Knight Bus
by animeisalltome
Summary: Brooke Flintwood, recently dumped and completely broke, is payed a visit by the all too familiar Knight Bus. The new conductor, Stan Shunpike, is in for a wild surprise when Brooke comes onto the bus, and into his heart. Please review!
1. Getting on the Bus

Hi everyone! This is my first Harry Potter fic, and I'm quite proud of it. Please review and tell me what you think.

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter- JK Rowling does.

Note: I kind of dropped Stan's accent. Hee hee. Don't hate me for it.

I looked out the window of the Knight Bus with a horrible dread rising in my stomach. Where would I go? I saw Stan Shunpike, the small excuse of a conductor, eyeing me with suspicion. He seemed older than the last time I had seen him, then again it had been a few years. Eventually he would come over and ask me where I was headed. And at the moment, he had about as good an idea as me. I had come on the bus in hysterics, sobbing up a storm, and any man knew that was his cue to stay far away. I started nervously running my hands through my auburn hair as the only other occupant of the bus got off the all to familiar automobile. The bus stayed in the same place, not shuddering its usual jerk as it pulled away to its next destination.

"Brooke." Stan said, turning around from his seat, "Where are you-"

"Just take me wherever," I said, rolling the words of my tongue and immediately regretted it. Waiting for another stop wasn't going to suddenly give me a place to stay that night.

"That will be another 16 sickles," He said awkwardly. I handed my money to him and slumped down again. It was silent as the bus jerked forward.

"So…" Stan started trying to break the silence.

"I don't want to talk about it." I said. Why did men always have to fill silence with talking? Talking that did no good, ending up with things you wish you could take back. I looked into the window, not at the terrain, passing so quickly beside me, but at my face instead. Was it because I wasn't pretty enough? I pulled my freckled cheeks back, making my face take on a sunken look. I let them go and slumped down again. The bus shuddered to a stop; my chair slid to the side and I almost fell over. A middle-aged woman and a young girl came on to the bus, their eyes were as puffy and blotched as mine. In the mother's hand, a small suitcase and the girl carried a rather worn looking doll. I looked at the mother's face, tears still in her eyes, framed mostly by her salt and pepper hair, obviously not wanting to be seen. She took a seat near the back. I smiled at the young blonde girl as she passed. She looked at me in awe and hurried after her mother. The Knight Bus shuddered off again as the mother yelled up an address at Stan. The girl stayed by her mother for a few seconds, looking concerned, until she hopped up suddenly and walked towards me. I blinked away from the window and turned to the girl now sitting next to me with a huge smile on her face.

"Hi, I'm Emily. I'm 5. That's my mom. She's 37." She said brightly. I chuckled a bit as her mother called to her in shock.

"Emily!" Her mother screamed in horror.

"What? It's the truth!" She yelled back. She turned back to me. "Where are you going? We're going to my grandma's. She makes good pancakes." She smiled again. She was small for her age, but the bright smile that light across her face made her seem at least 6 or 7. I smiled again at her naïveté and simplicity.

"I do like pancakes. But waffles are my favorite. There is this one muggle restaurant called Waffle House and they make the best waffles." I said, trying to change the subject knowing that Stan was listening. I was so stupid to pick a seat in the closest section to the front. The bus came to a jerk as a few men filed in. The little girl seemed unfazed but the sudden stop sent me falling to the floor. The expensive black dress I had bought for the occasion that night, went over my head. I knew that the new passengers had just seen my fancy knickers. I blushed a bright red and could hear my heart pounding in my ears. I moved quickly and pulled my dress down again. I hopped on to my seat again, ignoring the looks from the 3 other men. I heard a chuckle from the front of the bus, obviously coming from the driver's seat. I quickly took my shoe off, my left foot, ignoring the blisters. I aimed at the back of Stan's head and threw with all my might. He ducked from the shoe and it hit the windshield, the stiletto clattering to the floor. Stan got up from his seat, a stupid grin on his face, and handed it to me. I felt anger burn up inside of me. How dare he laugh at me! If he only knew what kind of day I was having!

"I think this is yours…" He whispered, giving me a devious grin. I snatched the shoe out of his hand. He kept grinning as he headed back to the driver's seat.

"Who the heck was stupid enough to promote you? Ernie was a way better driver than you, no doubt. AND he got along with me." I yelled at him, practically spitting the words as the bus took off again. I remembered the summers when I was constantly in the bus. But back then I knew where I was going. Now I had no idea. Stan kept his eyes on the "road".

" He died. They got him, right after…" He let his voice travel off. I looked away and felt my mouth going dry. I couldn't help but wonder if he had seen it. Did he even remember what happened all those months when the Imperius Curse was put over him? I turned my attention back to Emily, who was staring at me with wide eyes.

"Is he your husband?" She asked, her voice light with awe. I turned red, both with anger and embarrassment.

"What?" I asked. I heard Stan laugh again. The bus jerked again and I kept my hands firmly on my skirt, making sure it didn't fly up again.

"Go ahead, darling," Stan said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. I saw the men get off giving me longing looks. I sneered at them and then at Stan. "Tell her all about our courtship and eventual marriage." He smiled again and then something hit me.

"Where did your accent go?" I asked in shock. He pronounced everything correctly. He seemed unfazed.

"I took lessons from a regular on the bus. Taught me how to talk without my accent. Surprised? I quite like this new way of talking though." He smiled a genuine smile. He turned back to the wheel and started off. I looked at Emily again. Her expression went from dumbstruck to confused.

"No, we are not married. I just knew him when we were kids." I told her. She nodded her head.

"We still are kids," Stan retorted and I shook my head at him, a smile spreading on my face.

"I know how you feel. Bobby was in denial about our relationship until finally I just kissed him on the mouth." She smiled up at me. Her mother stormed up to us, finally hearing enough, I suppose.

"We are going to have a nice long talk when we get to Grandma's, missy. You aren't going to be able to even talk to another boy as long as you live." She said sternly. The bus stopped and I had to grab onto my chair to keep it from sliding and crashing into the mother, now gripping her daughter, who seemed unfazed by the stop.

"This is your stop, ma'am." Stan said. I scoffed at the word "ma'am". That little kiss up. "16 sickles." He said. The woman gave him her money quickly and left with little Emily waved weakly. I glanced at my clock and saw it was nearing midnight. I stood up from my chair knowing a bed could quickly replace it at any moment. They did just that, as if on cue, when I got up. The mismatched chairs turned themselves into long skinny beds, when I looked at almost longingly. Where was I going to sleep tonight? My stomach clenched at the thought of having to sleep outside. Stan cleared his throat and I noticed we were still outside of Emily's stop.

"If you really don't have anywhere to go-" Stan started, turning in his seat.

"I have somewhere to go!" I snapped and immediately regretted it. What if he would drive me to that one hotel in Diagon Alley? Or maybe he would even put me up for the night? Stan stayed silent, and I could feel my face turning red again. He knew I had nowhere to go. What if he kicked me out? I thought frantically. But before I had time to beg for mercy, he had already started up the bus and I was thrown onto my bed.

"W- where are we going?" I asked him. I stared a hole in the back of his messy brown hair. He shrugged half-heartedly. I hated when he did that. I suddenly remembered in the summer before my 5th year at Hogwarts, I had been waiting outside at some park, an unimportant one, the usual angry tears in my eyes. The bus had just appeared and as usual, Ernie welcomed me with a smile and a welcome back, and to his right, I saw a young man standing awkwardly by the door. He looked about the same age as me, maybe a year older.

"This is Stanley Shunpike, he's going to apprentice me from now on. Be nice to her, Stan, she's a regular." Ernie laughed. I chuckled to myself and was grateful for Ernie's friendliness.

" 'Ello, Miss. I 'ope we will get along together." He said shyly.

I was pulled back to reality as the bus screeched to a stop. I looked at Stan, who had stood up, turning off the bus. I looked at him. "Where are we?" I asked, suddenly unsure. Maybe after all these years Stan turned bad, maybe he was going to sell my body for money or worse… Stan could see the fears in my eyes. I quickly regained my composure and put on my poker face. Stan, although, broke into a big grin. I remembered back in that summer before 5th year, just a few weeks after we had first met, when the Knight Bus stopped yet again in front of me, how I had first seen that almost adorable grin.

"Brooke, you've never met my mum, 'ave you?" He grinned.


	2. A Home Like No Other

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

Author's note: I dropped Stan's mother's accent too. Sorry. The first sentence she speaks has as much of an accent I could put into writing but the rest is just normal. Same with his sister. Please review!

I gaped at him. Was he serious? The smile still perched on his face began to slowly slip off. His blue eyes showed nothing but hurt.

"I mean… You don't have to stay here… I know you don't have anywhere to stay so I just thought it was a good idea." Stan turned his eyes to the ground. And suddenly the Stan that was shy and nervous was back in front of me, so unsure of what to do. And how could I say no to that? It would be like kicking a puppy. I gave him a weak smile to show him it was all right. I got my light trunk from the compartment overhead and headed after him and through the doors of the Knight Bus, which where shut firmly behind me. I took my eyes off the ground long enough to notice my surroundings. It was so beautiful, I thought. I looked around and trees surrounded everywhere. Their colors changing, perfect hues of yellow and red. There was a large opening in between the many trees and positioned there was a big Victorian looking house. It had fading yellow paint on the outside and the door was painted a hideous green. There were big bushes around the house, and the grass was so unruly it looked like a savannah.

"I bet it is hell to rake leaves," I murmured, still memorized by the house. Although it looked big, I felt the love all around it. It was enveloping me. Stan knocked on the door. "Why are you knocking on the door? This IS you house, isn't it?" Stan shrugged and looked away quickly. We waited for a while, a minute passed and my heart rate began to decrease a little. Why was I worked up about meeting his mum? It's not like I was girlfriend or anything. I blushed at the words. I remembered Hunter's face at the restaurant.

_"Listen, I'm sorry, babe. But I just don't see us going anywhere. I mean we don't have a future." He said, not even a trace of guilt on his face._

_"You should have told me that a year ago, before you stole my heart." I said, wiping the tears from my eyes. Although I couldn't say I was surprised. I knew he had been sleeping with his slut of a secretary for the past 3 months._

_"It's not you… It's me-"_

The door opened quickly and a middle-aged woman opened the door. I could tell right away she was Stan's mother; her bright blue eyes matched her son's to perfection. They had the same color hair, a light brown.

" 'Ow many times do I 'ave to tell you? You live 'ere! You don't 'ave to knock!" She slapped the side of his head playfully. I already adored her.

"Sorry, Mum. I forgot my keys," He smiled and kissed her cheek, Mrs. Shunpike had a huge smile on her face. I cringed at this small exchange. My mum had never smiled at me like that. Mrs. Shunpike finally noticed me. She stared at me, in shock. I could tell because her mouth formed a perfect 'O'. I shifted the weight of my feet awkwardly.

"You never told me you were bring _a girl_ over!" Mrs. Shunpike said to her son. She pronounced this as if it was the most unbelievable thing she had ever heard of. We stared at each other for a few seconds until I looked away embarrassed. "I never thought someone as beautiful as you" She pointed at me, "would end up with someone like that," She said pointing at her son. My face turned bright red. That sounded like something my mum would say.

"Gee, thanks, Mum." Stan said, clutching his heart. He mimed a knife going through it. I could tell he wasn't offended though, he rarely was. Mrs. Shunpike suddenly realized what she had said.

"I didn't mean it like that darling, I just meant… you never had much luck with the ladies." She said flatly, she looked down again. "Well, come in! Come in!" She ushered us inside of the house quickly. I was stuck in the landing staring at a big open living room that stretched out in front of me. The walls were painted a beautiful bronze color that took my breath away. To my right I could make out a kitchen. And to my left was some carpeted stairs.

"I'm sorry, dear. I didn't get your name." Mrs. Shunpike said to me. She put the kettle on.

"Brooke Flintwood," I responded and I sat down warily beside Stan, who was seated at the kitchen table. The kitchen looked old and I could see watermarks and several scratches. It seemed palpable though, unlike anything at my house. I touched the cherry colored top just to make sure it was real and tangible. In the center of the table sat a variety of different books, stacked almost to my eye level. I could tell apart the many muggle classics. Mrs. Shunpike laughed.

"Well that will change soon, I hope." She smiled to herself, referring to my last name. And I blushed red. I forgot to tell her we weren't dating. What happened to introducing myself and immediately making it known Stan and I weren't dating. "So how long have you two been-" Mrs. Shunpike was interrupted by a large shriek. Her eyes darted to the kitchen door where a girl about 9 or 10 stood with her mouth hanging open. She had the same blue eyes but a mop of tangled blonde hair.

"STAN!" She yelled and ran right to him, throwing herself in his arms.

"Hi, Abby," He said smiling. "My sister," He mouthed to me. I nodded. I heard a lot about Abby, when she was first born until the last day of summer before my 7th year. I felt a tug at my heart. I wished I hadn't left then. Abby regained her composure and backed out her brother's arms.

"Where have you been for the past few weeks? I've been so lonely without Maddie and Tyler." She said, and I knew she was referring to her other siblings, probably off at Hogwarts. I'd only heard praise about them from Stan.

"I've been busy…." He trailed off, looking at me. I knew it was a signal not to say anything. Wait, why was looking at me like that? I didn't even know what he did with his spare time. I hadn't seen him for 6 years… was it?

"Who the hell are you?" Abby asked staring at me. Her mother gasped.

"Language, Abby!" Mrs. Shunpike roared, "That's Stan's girlfriend!" She said smiling. Abby's mouth formed a similar "O". My face blushed again. I was watching Stan and suddenly it was like he was having an epiphany. His face of confusion suddenly turned to embarrassment. I wasn't sure whose face was redder, his or mine. He stood up suddenly.

"She's… Brooke's not my… We aren't like… We're not…" If possible his face turned redder. He collapsed into his chair; his face was in his hands.

"We aren't dating." I stated, not daring to look Mrs. Shunpike in the eyes. Stan uncovered his face.

"I mean, I wouldn't mind it or anything… Oh God," He started and broke off. I stared at him, so aware of his mother's stares. Now I looked like a bad guy.

"It's not like that! I never turned him down or anything! We just… fell out of touch. This is the first time I've seen him in six years. I'll admit I did have a thing for him when I was at Hogwarts. Oh God… I just mean we haven't thought of anything like that," I collapsed next to Stan, covering my face with my sweaty hands to try and get it back to a normal temperature. I stole a glance at Mrs. Shunpike, who was not angry and demanding me to get out of her house, like I thought she would. Instead, she only wore a slightly confused expression. Abby though, looked like she had no idea what was going on.

"So have you two had sex?" Abby asked plainly. Mrs. Shunpike gasped.

"Abby! Language!" She yelled at her daughter, mortified.

"So have you?" Abby asked. Stan groaned and I felt more nervous. This time Mrs. Shunpike looked at me curiously instead of reprimanding Abby.

"No," I lied. I looked down, when I heard the kettle whistle. It knew I was lying. Oh Gosh. "Yes." I felt tears pricking in my eyes. Mrs. Shunpike dropped the cup she had been holding. It shattered into a thousand different pieces. "Reparo" I whispered and the cup fixed itself. Abby stayed silent.

"I'm too young to be an aunt, so you'd better watch it." She said suddenly left. I would have laughed if the situation weren't so tense. Silence filled the room and I suddenly wished I could go back in time. How could I have been so stupid? You don't tell your boyfriend's mother you've had sex!

"So let me get this straight. You have had" Mrs. Shunpike paused "_Sex_" she whispered and paused again before continuing "but you are not dating." She shook her head. Disappointment filled her eyes.

"We were kind of dating when it happened. But it was 6 years ago," Stan managed out, his voice cracking on the last few words. My throat was so dry, and the rug suddenly became very interesting to me. "I need to have a word with you, Brooke." Stan said quickly grabbing my hand and literally pulling out of the kitchen and through a door that led to a bathroom. I would have normally laughed at the irony. Both of us were too embarrassed to look at each other. I stared at the porcelain bathtub admiring it's gold clawed feet. "Why did you say yes? She would have believed you if you said no!" He whispered angrily.

"I don't want to lie to your mom! And besides it's true!" I said, tears pricked at the corners of my eyes. I quickly suppressed the urge to gather him in a hug and cry like I had so many times before. He locked his eyes on mine.

"You told me to forget about it! You said you didn't ever want to see me again! And then you show up at the Knight Bus tonight and what am I supposed to do? You look so dang sad. I loved you Brooke!" He said. I could feel his eyes burning into mine. He glanced at his watch. "It's already 1 in the morning!" He grumbled, trying to change the subject. "Maybe we should get to bed. You know, talk about it in the morning." I looked at him sadly.

"I was scared, alright?" I choked out the words before tears spilled out of my eyes. We weren't talking about my confession to his mother anymore, but about our old feelings. I turned my back to him, facing the wall. I suddenly felt his strong arms wrap around my body, I gave one last shaky sob, and turned around so my head was against his chest. He smelled like the Knight Bus, a welcoming scent, probably cinnamon. How I missed this. He shook his head but didn't let go of me.

"I don't think you understand, Brooke. I don't want what we had before. I don't want a fling. I don't only want to be the person you go to when your parent's marriage is in trouble. I want someone here all the time." He said, into my hair. He kissed the top of my head, barely touching it with his lips. "I know you can't do that though." I shook my head.

"I'll try. We can start over. Be friends first." I said and pushed him back. He smiled.

"Yeah. We can see how it goes. As friends." He said. I nodded but bit my lip. Was this just a rebound? I looked up into Stan's blue eyes. I saw myself staring in them. This was the man who knew all of my secrets, who loved me when no one else could. It took all of my strength to not summon the Knight Bus every night for the past 5 years. I shook my head. I just want to be with him right now, that's all. Stan opened the door and we exited hand and hand. Stan led her to the kitchen. "Mum, Brooke can stay the night in my room, right?" He asked innocently enough. His mother looked at me stonily and slowly nodded her head.

"If I hear any weird moans coming from your room, then tomorrow you will both be hit by the Conjunctivitis Curse."


	3. Floo Powder Power!

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter- JK Rowling does

A/N: If you wrote a review it would make my day. :)

"_That one there looks like an angry woman with a uni-brow," Stan said, pointing to the sky. I tried to follow his outstretched finger but all I could see was a random cluster of stars. "You know, it kind of looks like you..." He joked and I playfully punched his arm and smiled at him. He lay back in the grass at that park where we first met; I laid back with him and clasped his hand._

"_I don't want to go back this year," I murmured, burying my face in his chest. He took my face in his hands and looked, if possible, even deeper into my eyes. _

"_You know how I feel about that," He said softly. "Go there and enjoy it like I can't,"_

"_Maybe, if you asked then-" I started but knew it was worthless. He dropped out in 4__th__ year; he couldn't magically catch up to 7__th__ year. Stan shook his head. "I'll wait for you," I said, but it sounded so false coming out of my mouth. I suddenly felt like my mouth was stuffed with peanut butter. Where was that milk when you needed it?_

"_You don't have to say that," Stan said sadly. I stayed quiet knowing I couldn't say anything to help._

_"Promise me you won't forget about me?" I asked him. I held out my pinky. He quickly clasped it with his own but he looked away. I bit my lip expectantly. When he said nothing, my hope drained out of me and then, suddenly, it hit me. It wasn't going to work. He would be on the Knight Bus, stuck there forever, and I would get a job, somewhere out in the unknown world. I bit back the need to cry and slowly pushed myself into a sitting position. I buried my faces in my hands. I concentrated my thoughts on how the breeze lightly flitted over my head. It was too good of a night to be haunted with these feelings. My hands felt cold against my burning face. Before I knew what was happening, I felt two arms slowly circulate me._

I woke with a start. I sat up with a jerk as the covers of an unfamiliar bed tangled my legs. I stared at the wall opposite of me, a faint light shined in from a partially curtained window. The walls surrounding were a strange bronze color. Where the hell was I? I slumped down on the bed again, burying my head in my pillow. I tried recalling the dream I had had. I couldn't remember any specific details but I remember I was really really happy. I smiled to myself and closed my eyes again hoping sleep would overcome me.

"Don't play that with me!" Said an all too familiar voice. I kept my eyes shut. It was all a bad dream, really. He would just go away in a few seconds and I would wake up in Hunter's bed. I heaved a fake snore and cuddled in closer to pillow. He stayed silent, and I sighed a sigh of relief. He bought it. I heard footsteps leading away from the bed and the door close. I opened one of my eyes slowly to see if he was still around. Stan's face was mere inches from mine "Good Morning, darling," He said in a whisper with an all to stupid grin on his face. My other eye popped open and I slapped him on the head. "Ow!" Stan said jumping back from where he had been kneeling. I hated when he played with me like that. He was so two faced. How could he be so embarrassed with his mum but with me he was a devil? So, I guess this isn't a dream, I thought rubbing my sore hand. I looked at the pile of blankets on the ground and remembered talking for hours before the both of us passed out asleep. He never seemed to run out of stories about the goons who rode on the bus. I told him about my job, the low paying one, a waitress at a new restaurant in Diagon Alley.

"Why are you up so early?" I questioned throwing a pillow at him. Stan smiled and shot me a glance.

"Well, it is 2 in the afternoon," He smiled cheekily. I stared in shock. We barely went to sleep minutes ago! How was it possible?

"Is your mum looking for me?" I asked him, jumping out of the bed. I was surprised to find myself in a pair of his pajama bottoms and one of his shirts. I found my black dress rolled up into a ball on the floor.

"Yes, but I told her we got to bed late," He said and I nodded, wondering if Mrs. Shunpike took what he had said the wrong way. "I didn't tell her how long you would be staying when she asked…" Stan trailed off and looked at me with a question in his eyes. My heart wrenched and I felt my breathing shorten. Where would I stay? I had sold my apartment long ago and moved in with Hunter… Now what? I had enough money for a dingy rat infested apartment, but barely at that.

"I'll look for a place tomorrow. I'll be out in less than a week, promise." I said, pleading him not to press. He nodded slowly and headed to the door.

"Mum and Abby are going shopping and they wanted to know if you wanted to go. That's why I woke you up." He turned to face the door and then back towards me. "Did you know you snore?" He said simply, that devilish grin on his mouth. I jumped. I do not snore!

"I do not snore!" I yelled my thoughts. I didn't! I think I would know if I snored! He slowly started backing out of the door and I quickly followed him. He broke off into a run heading all around the unfamiliar house.

"BROOKE SNORES! BROOKE SNORES!" He yelled rounding bends and walls, the house seemed to be growing bigger and bigger. I chased after him, my arms stretched in front of me trying to reach him and figure out where the off button was. He headed down the stairs and into the kitchen I had seen last night. "BROOKE SNORES! BROOKE SNORES!" He yelled again and I saw Mrs. Shunpike and Abby sitting at table already dressed as we rounded a corner. Mrs. Shunpike was sipping tea while Abby read a skinny book. Stan finally stopped, gasping for breath, and I grabbed his arm as I doubled over gasping for air too. When finally my lungs seemed to expand at a normal rate, I turned to Stan and smacked his shoulder.

"I don't snore!" I yelled at him. He giggled at looked at his mother who looked at me in stony silence.

"I know. I just wanted you to chase me," He smiled and sat down next to Abby, which left the only seat open next to Mrs. Shunpike. I took the seat next to her suddenly felt very conscious of Stan's pajama pants and his shirt, which hung loosely on me.

"I suppose Stan told you about our shopping trip. I want to leave in a half an hour." She said in a moderate tone, not showing any emotion. I grimaced and looked down.

"I don't really have anything to wear-" I trailed off. I could always wear my little black dress, but it was so formal I might as well have been heading to the Yule Ball. She looked at me and shook her head.

"I figured as much. I found some old clothes of mine that might fit you." She said. I mumbled thanks but wondered if her clothes would fit my, for lack of a better word, bodacious frame. I took the clothes she outstretched to me and Stan led me to the bathroom. We stopped outside the door, neither of us bothering to move.

"She's just not used to you. She'll warm up in no time." He whispered and took off leaving me in the darkened bathroom. I turned on a light, shut the door, and pulled the clothes out. A light pink top lay first and I put it on gingerly, hoping not to tear the fabric. The shirt suddenly grew to fit the curves of my body exactly. The jeans did the exact same and I was very grateful. I knew that Mrs. Shunpike must have put some kind of enchantment on them. I left the bathroom in a much better mood knowing that Stan's mother was warming up to me, as he had called it. I met Abby and Mrs. Shunpike back in the kitchen and wondered if we would be able to apparate to Diagon Alley but I knew that Abby was too young. I dreaded the thought of going by Floo Powder, but Mrs. Shunpike suddenly grabbed some powder on the floor next to the fireplace and through it into the fireplace. The flames immediately turned green and Abby yelled "Diagon Alley" like an old pro and stepped in. I was still unused to Floo Powder, growing up from a half-muggle family and spending most of my time with my muggle mother. I didn't even know it existed until in the winter of my 7th year when I went to a friend's house for winter break. I had been watching the chimney absent-mindedly waiting for Santa, and imagine my surprise when somebody actually came out of the then green flames.

"You go first, Brooke, Stan said he wanted to talk to me," Mrs. Shunpike said. I nodded and moved forward. I warily threw the powder into the fireplace, the flames immediately turned green.

"DIAGON ALLEY!" I yelled a little to loudly. I felt my feet reach a floor some moments later and looked to find myself in the infamous Diagon Alley. Abby stood a few feet away with a smug grin on her face.

"I have been using Floo Powder since I was a baby." She said as I tumbled over my own feet to try and get to her. Mrs. Shunpike popped out of the fireplace next with a huge grin on her face. I gasped to see her face had a glow to it and she was far happier than I had seen her before. She walked over to us, her arms outstretched. How strange, it looked like she was heading towards me. Wait, she WAS heading towards me. She wrapped her slim arms around me and gave her best attempt at a bear hug. I stood there frozen. What the hell had Stan told her?

"Stan told me everything!" Mrs. Shunpike beamed. My fears had come true. I was still frozen and even Abby looked appalled. I nodded my head jerkily. Even if Stan had told her complete lies, I liked this Mrs. Shunpike much better. "I'm so sorry about your parent's marriage though. It is their fault that now you're afraid of commitment." There it was. I nodded again prepared to keep up any lie. "He told me how the two of you fell in love when you were teenagers but fate had kept you apart. It's like a soap opera!" She clapped her hands together excitedly.

"I guess it was just meant to be. Each night I cry myself to sleep rethinking the last words he said to me." I said waving my arms dramatically, sarcasm dripped off of my voice. Mrs. Shunpike however didn't seem to get my joke and let out an excited squeal. Abby though shot me a look that I shrugged at behind Mrs. Shunpike's back.

"Mrs. Shunpike, what are-" I started but was cut off by Mrs. Shunpike.

"Stop, Brooke. It's Julia. You could even call me 'Mum' if you want. I suspect we'll be family quite soon." She said excitedly. I could practically see the wedding plans in her eyes. I nodded and blushed. I mean, it was a great save by Stan, and I could probably stay at their house for a lot longer than I originally expected, but that was a lot of pressure.

"I don't really know if we're that serious yet," I said drifting off.

"Nonsense, dear. I see the way he looks at you and the way you look at him!" Mrs. Shunpike said. I blushed again, a deeper red if possible. She grasped Abby's hand, which the independent 9 year old quickly shrugged off, and we headed towards Flourish and Blott's. Abby stalked a few paces ahead of us and I laughed at our resemblance. I remembered always wanting to be independent, not wanting to be seen with my mother, who always seemed to be on the phone, or even worse, pretending that we were at the mall instead of the magic filled streets. Mrs. Shunpike, or should I say Julia, couldn't stop talking about my apparently drama filled life, almost making up my relationship with Stan as we followed after Abby. She babbled on and on about how she always knew truelove existed, yada yada yada.

"- I always doubted that he would find someone, I mean with what happened to his father and me. He was so set on providing for the family once his father left and- well you know the story. He dropped out of Hogwarts, despite my protests, and started apprenticing for what was his name?" She said looking at me.

"Ernie," I supplies entering the cool bookstore.

"That's right, Ernie. And then after that he had that horrible Imperius Curse put on him. I didn't see him for that long time he spent in Azkaban." I saw her eyes fill with tears and I remembered when I heard the news that Stan was put in Azkaban, I couldn't believe it. I cursed the former Minister of Magic, and then took it back, feeling horrible for cursing the dead. "And then he came back. He wasn't home often. He spent all of his time on that darn bus. Eventually he started coming home every once and a while. And then imagine my surprise when he brings you home!" She squealed again and took my hand in hers. I smiled at her warmly. She was so cute! I wanted to take her home and bake her into a pie. "And you're everything he's ever wanted! I remember he used to talk about you back when he was younger, 16 or so, I guess. But I didn't put 2 and 2 together! I guess it was just meant to be!" Abby then came stalking up to us, a shopping bag already clutched in her hand.

"Oh sorry, Mom," Abby sneered, "I almost didn't recognize you. You were to busy giggling like a school girl to realize I had left you." Mrs. Shunpike just shrugged and I stifled a life. Yes, she was an exact copy of a younger me.

"Abby, you learn how to fly a broom yet?" I asked as we headed towards Fortescue's for ice cream. A relative of old Fortescue recently reopened Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor, and I was eternally grateful. I didn't think I could stand another trip to Diagon Alley without an ice cream stop. It was relatively not busy, probably because it was a Tuesday afternoon. Abby shot another look towards me.

"No, I'm not at Hogwarts yet." She snipped and sent me a look that looked as if to say "DUH!" I held my hands up in a defensive position.

"I would have thought you would have stolen your sister's, or even your brother's, brooms, a crafty girl like you." I said, smiling. She blushed a deep red.

"Who says I haven't?" She said and stuck her tongue out at me. Mrs. Shunpike came back with 3 chocolate scoops and Abby immediately stuck her tongue back in her mouth.

"I think we have Stan's old broom in the attic. Maybe you could teach her some moves." Mrs. Shunpike suggested. I saw a shimmer of excitement grow on Abby's face but it quickly disappeared.

"Why should I learn from her?" Abby spat. I smiled again. She grimaced and I could tell my amusement just mad her madder.

"I was a seeker for my house for 3 years. And I'll have you know, each of those years we won the Quidditch Cup." I said and began to dig into my ice cream. I could see a look of wonderment cross over Abby's face; it was quickly replaced with disgust.

"So? I bet you were on Slytherin's team!" She spat. Mrs. Shunpike gasped.

"Tyler is in Slytherin! Just because that house has had some sort of reputation in the past doesn't mean that everyone in it is bad! I'm surprised at you Abby. Your own brother… really!" Mrs. Shunpike said loudly, a twinge of disappointment on her voice. Abby mumbled an apology and I stared at my melting ice cream. I licked up a dripping side quickly as it slid down the side of my cone.

"I was in Ravenclaw." I said to Abby but she no longer paid any attention to what I was saying and sulkily ate her ice cream.

"Maddie is in Ravenclaw. Stan was in Gryffindor. I have no doubt that Abby will be in Hufflepuff and then we can have our own House Cup each year." Mrs. Shunpike giggled.

I heard Abby mumbled something about Hufflepuff being "stupid cowards" but Mrs. Shunpike shot her a look and she went back to her silence.

"What house were you in, Mrs. Shun- Julia?" I asked remembering our conversation earlier. I ate the last of the sugar cone I had in my hand and looked over to Abby again but she was engrossed in eating her ice cream and staring at passer byers.

"I was in Hufflepuff myself. My husband though was in Ravenclaw and was he ever so smart!" She said excitedly and I saw Abby cringe at the mention of her father. Mrs. Shunpike looked toward the setting sun. "We'd better get going. I know Stanley will be starving by now. C'mon, Abby." She said. Abby swallowed the last of her cone and stood up. Her mother grasped her hand again and this time Abby didn't pull away. I followed behind quietly them and we Flooed back home. I shook the thought out of my head. Let me rephrase. We flooed back to Stan's house. I sighed, what have I gotten myself into?


	4. As Friends

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of it's characters- JK Rowling does

A/N: Still no review yet... If you review I shall give you all the Treacle Tart you'll ever want to eat! (Ok that's a lie, but I still do want the reviews) I felt that this chapter was too long too, so sorry if I bored you to tears, but we need keep our head down and power through (Air five for the Arrested Development quote?). The next chapter is shorter but not by much.

Dinner that night was an extremely appetizing pot roast with a side of mashed potatoes. I thought the dinner was absolutely amazing and helped myself to seconds, while Stan went back for fourths and even fifths. He looked as if he hadn't eaten before in his life. He claimed it was from working on the bus all day but I pointed out he had only been working for a few hours. Mrs. Shunpike scolded him again and again for eating too fast but Abby thought it was the funniest thing in the world. She looked at her older brother in amazement. Being an only child, despite my stepsiblings, had its downsides. It was always quiet in my house; so quiet I could hear my mother cry herself to sleep at night. I had longed for a sibling of some sort. Eventually, I realized my mother had no intentions of marrying again and I had forced her to by me a dog. A car hit it two days after we bought it.

"What are we doing tomorrow?" I asked politely as I rinsed out my plate in the sink and put it in to the dishwasher. I felt Stan come up beside me and rinse his plate out. I cursed my skin for rising in goose bumps as his arm brushed against mine. He noticed my reaction and smiled at me. I stuck my tongue out at him.

"Well, tomorrow I was thinking that we could-" Mrs. Shunpike started but Stan had cut her off.

"Sorry, Mum, tomorrow Brooke and I are going on a date." He smiled that goofy grin towards me. I felt my eyebrows shoot up. But apparently oblivious, he still kept that stupid grin on his face.

"So that's how you're going to ask?" I said nonchalantly, trying to give of the impression that my heart was beating at a normal rate.

"Not good enough?" He asked with the same tone as he leaned against the counter next to me.

"I guess it'll do. But I might be busy. You know I have all these suitors and just not enough time," I said smiling at him. His smile widened and he slipped his hand into mine. I suddenly realized that Mrs. Shunpike was still staring at us. I untangled out hands and looked over at her. She was wearing a huge grin, no doubt picking the band to play at our wedding. I blushed. We weren't getting married! What's with all this "our wedding" business? I suddenly felt a sense of dread. Maybe we were rushing things. I mean we had only known each other for 2 days! Well, of course, I knew we had known each other 2 years before that. But don't you have to start by scratch? I saw Abby miming barfing motions off to the side. I blushed deep red. I could feel my ears turn red and I could sense the coming of a sudden bout of the sweats. "Um… Weren't we supposed to be friends first?" I whispered to Stan when his mother and sister had been consumed in what they were doing before. His smile faded.

"We were friends yesterday and today. Tomorrow will only be a date, not a marriage proposal," He said softly into my ear. I could feel my blush redden. He must be a mind reader. How else could he know what I was thinking all of the time? That goofy smile he always had was replaced by a slight frown. His eyebrows furrowed. "I guess… if you're not comfortable then we could go as just friends…" He trailed off and his eyes begged me to disagree. I looked away.

"Maybe that would be best." I said. After all, I had just gotten out of a serious relationship the day before. Yeah, I felt the power in my conviction now. I looked over to Stan if he felt the same. But he wasn't looking at me; he was looking at the floor. I could feel his sadness rolling off in waves. Was I this pathetic looking when I had gotten on the bus just the day before? My conclusion suddenly burst at the seams.

"It's not like I don't want it to be a date tomorrow," I said truthfully. "But I just got dumped by my boyfriend of a year yesterday and… you know…" I said unsure of how to end my sentence. He looked me in the eyes again but it was my turn to look away.

"I understand. I'll wait however long you want me to, and until then we'll be… friends," He smiled falsely at me. His blue eyes swept over me. I couldn't help but feel as if I was trapped in the middle of the ocean and the waves were crashing above me. "I don't want you to think that I'll get sick of you in the mean time. I waited for you for 6 years and I can go another 6. Hopefully it won't take that long though." He smiled again, and this time for real. I took his hand in mine again.

"I like you too much to screw it up. Make sure that you'll let me give you a chance." I said softly again. Stan suddenly looked up and around to his mother and sister, who had been not so discreetly eavesdropping.

"C'mon," He pulled my hand as he ran up the stairs and into his room. I scrambled after \him. He pulled me close again, my hand still in his. "I can't very well kiss you in front of my mum, can I?" And before I knew what he was doing, he placed his lips on mine. My eyes were wide open and before my brain could process what was happening he pulled back.

"Did you kiss me?" I asked dumbly and put my fingers to my lips. He nodded and smiled again.

"But it doesn't really matter since you know- we're just friends," He smiled even bigger. My face got red suddenly. I absently began pawing at my lips.

"Yeah, friends…" I said agreeing unconsciously.

"So we're on tomorrow?" He asked, opening his door and walking out.

"Uh what? Yeah." I said distracted. He just kissed me! Stan kissed me, Brooke! I squealed mentally. I heard a laugh and saw that Stan was still watching me. I looked at him and blushed again. "I guess I'll just go to bed then," I said awkwardly. My voice came out in a sort of squeak.

"Brooke, it's 7:30." He said and waggled his eyebrows.

"We stayed up late yesterday." I pointed out. He rolled his eyes and came back into the room. He was going to kiss me again! I closed my eyes and puckered my lips.

"What are you doing?" I heard Stan laugh from the other side of the room. I blushed even deeper. He tossed me the pajama pants I was wearing last night and a new shirt of his. "I didn't know I was that good of a kisser. But then again, you are begging for more aren't you?" Stan said grinning. I hit his shoulder. Maybe with my luck his grin would break his head in half. He came closer to me and bent down. He brushed his lips against my cheek. Goose bumps broke out on my skin and I couldn't help the sense of euphoria washing over me. Friends, friends, friends, friends, I chanted to myself. "Good night, Brooke." He said walking out of the room and closing the door.

"Eep!" I squealed as he walked away. I quickly changed into his pajamas, heaven forbid he walked back in. I climbed in to the bed, his bed, and snuggled down.

Being the night owl I was, I stayed up late. I lay on the bed day dreaming about Stan. My 'friends' mantra was slowly fading in my head. I held my breath as I heard the door open and quickly closed my eyes as Stan entered. I did the fake snore I had done this morning, cursing how phony it sounded. I opened my eyes a slit and saw Stan sleepily make his way towards his bed, pulling his shirt off in the process. I tried to hide my gasp as another snore. His chest was covered in scars. The last time I had seen his bare chest, it had been unmarked. I didn't even want to think about what must have happened. I grimaced as thoughts flowed through my mind. He climbed onto his couch and pulled up a blanket.

"Good night, Brooke," He said.

"Good night, Stan," I said before I could stop myself.

I woke up suddenly and abruptly. Why was it still dark? I looked at the clock sitting on Stan's dresser. It was 3 o' clock in the morning. Why would I wake up this early in morning? I couldn't remember a bad dream, or any dream for that matter. And then, I heard it. Stan heaved a great breath in and as he breathed out, I heard the loudest snore I have ever heard. I giggled and quickly pulled the covers up on me again. He would never hear the end of this.

The next time I woke up, sun was streaming into the window above my- no, Stan's bed. I heard a dull roar and realized Stan was still sleeping. I took my pillow and threw it at him. I looked at the clock as Stan stirred and sleepily threw the pillow back at me, not even getting it halfway across the room. It was 8 o' clock.

"Hey, Stan, my main man," I said to him and then blushed. I remembered the kiss from last night.

"Hey Brooke, the girl with the looks," He said. I grimaced.

"There is so many things that rhyme with Brooke, and that's what you pick?" I asked him. He just smiled, looking much more alert.

"Are you ready for our date today?" He asked.

"Yeah. Where are we- Wait, I thought we agreed that it wasn't a date," I said confused. Didn't we already settle this already? He smiled bigger.

"I think you agreed that it was a date last night," He chuckled and I looked around for another pillow to chuck at him.

"Yeah, well don't pretend I didn't hear what you were doing last night." I said smiling. He blushed a shade close to scarlet. I didn't know he was that sensitive about snoring.

"You heard that?" He asked his voice breaking. I nodded and got off from the bed.

"Don't tell my mom." He threatened. I shrugged.

"I should yell it out to the whole house. In fact, I think I will." I said chuckling. He turned brighter red.

"What?" He said, his voice cracked so much that the word wasn't even recognizable.

"You heard me," I grinned at him.

"You wouldn't dare!" He yelled jumping up but before he could reach out to me. I opened his door and took off running about through the house as he had done the morning before.

"STAN SNORES! STAN SNORES!" I yelled bounding down the steps. Stan caught my arm before I had even touched the second one.

"What the hell are you talking about?" He asked and his confusion spread across his face.

"Well, obviously, last night I heard you snoring!" I said pointing out the obvious. Hadn't we had a whole conversation about this?

"I don't care about that! I thought you were talking about something else… is all," He said, blushing deeper read. It was my turn to be confused.

"What are you talking about? What else could you be doing at ni- Oh my God," I said in sudden realization. "Disgusting! You would do that while I'm in the room?" He shook his head.

"It was a dream! I couldn't help it." He said. I shrugged. I guess it's natural. Now that I think about it, when Hunter wasn't shagging his secretary and then shagging me, he sure did have a lot of those dreams. Stan looked suddenly to his right and I followed his gaze. Standing there was his mother. I don't think I had ever seen Stan's face so red. I mean he had blushed deeply earlier and back when I was in school he blushed at the drop of the hat, but this was unreal. His face bordered on purple. Mrs. Shunpike had a slight tint to her face as well. "How long have you been standing there?" Stan croaked out. If his voice cracked anymore I would have thought he was a frog.

"Well, I heard yelling so I came to see what was happening." She said looking at the floor. I knew I should have been embarrassed as well but I felt the need to laugh and before I could stop myself a giggle escaped my lips. Before I knew it, I was leaning against Stan for support. I was barely breathing it was so funny. Tears were forming in my eyes. Mrs. Shunpike gave a grunt and then began to giggle along with me. Stan however remained stony faced.

"If you laugh, she will forget about it," I whispered in his ear and as I had hoped he burst out in to loud earth shaking guffaws. Abby came from her room and I bet we looked silly, laughing like maniacs.

"Why am I related to such freaks?" She asked no one in particular and we all started chuckling again. When the laughter died down and then stopped completely, Mrs. Shunpike gave some more clothes.

"You should go back to your house and bring some of your things over here. Stan didn't tell me how long you are staying, but I'm thinking at least until you guys buy a place of your own, right?" She said, hinting heavily. The long delayed blush crept to my cheeks. Stan just chuckled and kissed his mother's cheek before heading into his room. I took a quick shower and pulled on the clothes Mrs. Shunpike had given me. I put them on and was thankful that they fit my body again. I said a quick incantation under my breath and my hair magically dried itself. Then with the toilet paper roll I had transfigured into a flat iron, I straightened my hair. They didn't put me into Ravenclaw for nothing. I slid from the bathroom after checking myself in the mirror. I walked to Stan's room and found him sitting on his bed in jeans and a t-shirt. I couldn't help but notice the subtle differences from his teen years to now. Instead of the untamed long mess of hair he had had before, it was now trimmed, ending at his ears. The pimples he had had all through the years I had known him had cleared up immensely. His blue eyes though, could be spotted from miles away. He still had his skinny frame, but instead of it being lanky like it had been, it was now broader with muscles. He waved a hello. I sat on the bed next to him.

"I read in a magazine that girls like mini golf," He started nervously. I nodded and motioned him to keep talking. "Anyway, I found this one muggle place where the have mini golf and then afterward there is a pizza place joined with it. Smart, huh? So anyway I was thinking we could eat at the pizza parlor for lunch and then play mini golf." He finished. He got a rather smug look on his face. I smiled.

"Then what are we waiting for?" I asked. I grabbed his hand and we apparated away. We landed with all body parts in tact, no one being splinched. We were outside of a familiar looking place. The sign outside read nothing but "MINI GOLF AND PIZZA" I laughed at the obviousness. "I think I've been here before!" I said excitedly. It suddenly came back to me. "My dad took me here when I was 7 or 8." I remembered how happy I was when we went and then suddenly a different feeling replaced my joy. I remembered the real reason my father had taken me here.

"_Honey, I have some great news!" My balding father said excitedly as our pizza was delivered to our table. I tried to look away. I knew what was coming. Whenever Dad said there was good news, it was in fact very bad news; even at 7 years old I knew this._

"_Really?" I said disinterested. I picked up a sugar packet and began to read the ingredients. My dad snatched it from my hands and placed it on his side of the table. _

"_Stacy and I, you remember Stacy, right? We're getting married." He said beaming. I nodded slowly. He looked at me for some sign of emotion._

"_But sadly, that means Daddy has to move far away to be with her," He added emphasize on some words and moved his hands as if I didn't get it._

"_Oh," I said picking up another sugar package. _

"_Daddy won't be able to see you that much though." He said, a beaming look still on his face. "But now you'll have a lot more-"_

"Brooke?" Stan asked and I realized he had been calling me for some time. He had a concerned look on his face. I blinked a few times until I realized that he was waiting on me to answer.

"You know, we haven't really been on a date." I said to him, taking his arm.

"Of course we have," He protested. I raised my eyebrows at him.

"Let's see, we snogged occasionally at that one park. We were forever chatting on the Knight Bus and when Ernie wasn't looking we would snog then too. But had we been out anywhere?" I said trying to think. I only remembered the very intent snogging sessions in the dark corners of the bus that the rearview mirror couldn't see. I vividly remembered every time I got on the bus in tears.

"I met your mom," He pointed out.

"She didn't like you. Didn't matter though, I moved out within days of her expressing that." I told him, but of course he already knew this. The day I moved out was the last day we saw each other. I frowned at the bad memory. We walked through the double doors and into the cold over air-conditioned building. On one side was a register and menu posted on the dingy counter, on the other side there lay a few putters and a bored looking cashier in between were an array of mix matched tables and chairs. I looked out of the big windows and faced a rather large mini golf course. We ordered our pizza and sat down on one of the cleaner tables. "What are we supposed to talk about? I already know everything about you." I stated. He just grinned.

"Doubt it. What's my middle name?" He challenged.

"Oliver," I answered feigning boredom and picking at my nails. He shrugged.

"That was easy. What is my favorite muggle movie?" He asked, determination to win on his face.

"Sleepless in Seattle," I said with a flip of the hand. He had told how excited he was to see that movie back in the summer of 6th year; it was his first muggle movie. In between snogging sessions he made me quote Meg Ryan as he played Tom Hanks. It was probably one of the more embarrassing things I've done.

"Damn," He cursed. He scrunched up his face in concentration. "Aha! I've got one you'll never get!" He smiled and I smiled back.

"Try me," I dared him.

"Who was my first kiss?" He asked smiling devilishly. Oh this was too easy!

"Molly Wilkins. You were on the playground and she tackled you to the ground and kissed you on the lips as a dare when you were 7." I answered and smiled wickedly and he sat dumbstruck, "Then your lips remained virgin until the met mine and became sullied and impure," I said and we both started laughing.

"When did I tell you this?" He asked surprised.

"A game of truth or dare, summer of my 5th year, the second time we met." I said smiling. He smiled too.

"You must have really been in love with me if you remembered everything from 8 years ago." He said grinning and how could I deny that. It was true after all.

"I forgot to ask. You had any girlfriends since me?" I asked nonchalantly after our pizza was laid down in front of us.

"Yeah, tons of them. The women really want guys who had been under the Imperius curse for almost 2 years." He laughed at his own joke but I could just stare in horror. I had completely forgotten. He noticed my discomfort and quickly changed the subject.

"How about you. Any boyfriends?" He asked. "I know you just got out of a 'serious' relationship but anyone else?" He too pretended to be disinterested in the information. But I knew it affected him. Without realizing it, he had just drowned his piece of pizza in Parmesan cheese. He looked down and continued to eat it as if he meant to put that much cheese on.

"Nope, I was clean for 5 years and then Hunter came along. And wham bam, I'm selling my apartment and moving in after a good shagging session. We were together a year, he was cheating on me for a fourth of our relationship. I don't even think he said he loved me." I shrugged and Stan looked on in horror. His face read anger. "I knew it was coming though. I mean we had no future or anything." He was a beaming red now but instead of being out of embarrassment it was because of anger.

"Do I need to punch him?" He asked roughly. I shook my head jerkily. "No, I don't need your permission. You're to nice, I'll beat the crap out of him anyway." I wasn't even surprised.

"Oh come of it. You don't even know his full name; you don't know what he looks like. Very noble, though. But we don't need you getting arrested for something stupid like that." I said munching on my last piece of pizza and standing up. He stared at me in shock and mumbled something about cursing common sense. "Ready for some mini golf?"


	5. Mexican Food, Moving and Chocolate Frogs

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of it's characters, places, etc.- JK Rowling does.

A/N: Reviews make me smile :)

Mini Golf was fun but short. Between the jokes and usual banter between Stan and me, time seemed to fly and by the time we had finished the expert course, which we had both failed miserably at, the sun had set. We returned our putters to the same bored looking cashier and headed into an alley to apparate home.

"I wonder if we should get dinner first or if Mrs. Shunpike is making us something." I said as Stan grabbed my hand and prepared us to side- long apparate. He paused to consider it.

"Well, considering it's my mom, I would suspect she made enough food to feed Dumbledore's Army. But if we eat dinner out she will have no trouble saving the leftovers for when I leave on the Knight Bus tomorrow." He said looking at me to make a decision.

"Well since you've been so persistent I guess you can take me to dinner, Stanley Shunpike. Just stop demanding so much from me." I said smiling. We apparate to a Mexican Restaurant a few blocks down, that apparently had the best muggle food in the world.

"What is the difference between muggle Mexican food and magical Mexican food?" I asked him. He shrugged.

"I guess that magical Mexican food is just so much more… magic!" I couldn't tell if he was being serious or not but I still laughed. We entered and were immediately seated. I guess it isn't that crowded on Wednesday at 8 o' clock. Dinner went quickly and I made sure not to order any beans so as not to fart all night long. Stan, on the other hand, had so many beans I actually didn't want to sleep in the same room as him tonight. The bill came and we both awkwardly looked at each other. I couldn't pay and he knew it. Should I offer anyway? "Um… I'll pay for it." He said and took out two twenties and slipped them in the bill holder. We waited, in more awkward silence if possible, for change. I mumbled a thanks so I could hear to Stan. I didn't know it he heard me or not since he didn't react, but I was too embarrassed to say it again. We were silent as we found another alleyway and disapparated outside of the Shunpike's. I couldn't see the Knight Bus anywhere. It wasn't in the place Stan had parked it. He glanced at me and answered my unasked question.

"I own the Knight Bus but when I need a break, or vacation, like now, I have people cover for me and they drive the bus. Even though I don't have a need for the Knight Bus at the moment some witch or wizard is in need of it." He said as we lingered outside, on the porch.

"I had a nice time." I started and Stan smiled.

"Me too. It was so much fun. I'm surprised that you knew that much about me." He said smiling. I shrugged my shoulders in response. We both stayed silent.

"So do you-"

"Did you think-" We both began at the same time and stopped abruptly. I stared intently at the porch swing on Stan's right and he stared at the porch light. Why was it so hard to look him in the eyes?

"You go first,"

"You go first," We both said at the same time. We laughed quietly.

"I'll go first." Stan said, "Because I know you didn't have a follow-up for the beginning of your sentence. While I on the other hand, have something to say," He said. Sometimes I really suspect he can read minds. I really didn't have a follow up, in fact I was going to say: "Did you think that the mini golf place was a little dirty?" And that would have been anticlimactic even by my standards. "So do you-" He stopped expecting me to interrupt, when I didn't he continued, "do you think you still want to be just friends?" He looked at the ground and shifted on his feet uncomfortably. I stayed silent but the truth was, I didn't want to be just friends, I wanted to marry this man and birth as many blue eyes babies as I could. But of course I couldn't say that. I had only met him again 3 days ago. Screw it, a part of me wanted to say, while the other half screamed, don't do it, it won't last and your heart will be broken and you'll be out of a place to stay. I sighed, that was a long list. 'Why does it matter if she's in love?' The first part argued. 'There's only a 50 percent success rate on that though,' a snide voice remarked. 'SCREW IT!' The first voice screamed a little too loudly. I looked up to see that Stan was still looking expectantly at me.

"There is like a war going on inside of my head right now. I don't know if you know what it feels like." I said but he nodded and I trust he knew exactly what I meant. "Part of me really wants to go out with you, and fall in love with you again, but the other half, the sensible half, is saying it won't work out." I told him and then felt bad that I had blabbed my deepest thoughts to someone. Both of the voices now screamed 'TRAITOR!' We stayed silent for a while when finally Stan spoke.

"Well, if you think about it, there is only two ways this relationship would be able to work out: the first way is that we will fall madly in love and get married and live to a ripe old age…" He stopped and looked at me, expecting me to interrupt as he had done before. When I didn't he continued. "The second way is that you will leave me. I on the other hand, don't think I will ever be able to get you out of my head." He said gruffly and he took a step towards me. I didn't move away. He moved inches closer slowly, slow enough that I could have stopped him if I wanted to. He wrapped me in a hug and I breathed in his scent, cinnamon, I pulled him closer and buried my face in his chest.

"Just give me some more time. Give me a month and I'll know for sure. It might not even take that long." I said stifling a cry and he gripped me tighter.

"Alright." He said quietly. He kissed the top of my head so tenderly that I'm surprised I didn't fold into his embrace. We broke apart slowly and opened the door to the Shunpike's abode.

We were quiet for the rest of the night. I don't even think I talked except to answer Mrs. Shunpike's questions with one-word answers. We retired early and quietly got into our separate beds, still fully clothed and didn't fall asleep. I could even hear Stan muttering to himself and hitting his pillow a few times. I on the other hand don't understand why I did it. I guess it made sense at the time but why did I reject him? I liked him didn't I? But before I could think about it any longer a voice that sounded suspiciously like my mothers gave me the answer: _He will break your heart. You will never be happy with a man. They only bring you tears._ When she had said this to me the day I moved out, every time I looked at a man for months and months afterward the same mantra echoed in my head. Deep down I realized that those words were probably the cause of my first breakup with Stan.

"Brooke," Stan said standing up and coming towards me. I could barely make out his form because it was so dark. He kneeled by my bed. He had horrible bed head and I reached out to pat it down. "I just want you to know, I won't rush you or anything but I really _really_ like you. I can kind of see us together… you know in the future. I thought these things when we were younger too, but I would never dare tell you them… I just thought you might like to know that." He got up and moved back towards the couch. I wanted to crawl next to him on his sofa but didn't dare move.

"Thanks," I said to him even though I was pretty sure he didn't hear me. It was the same as it was before. I didn't dare say it more than a whisper. I settled into the silence and just when I was about to fall asleep I heard a small and barely audible "You're Welcome."

The next day I tried to act normal with Stan, who was seemingly unfazed by our previous conversations, I really tried. I even through in a few jokes but I felt so awkward that even Abby noticed. He left for work minutes after finishing his breakfast. I watched as he left through the front door and wished I could redo the entire breakfast. I daydreamed on how things should have gone; always ending I got a huge kiss on the lips and a marriage proposal that I accepted. I must have been smiling like an idiot.

"Honey, are you alright?" Mrs. Shunpike asked. I tired to resume a normal expression and nodded.

"What are you doing today?" Abby asked. She was staring into her cereal bowl. I was surprised she could talk to me in a normal tone.

"I think I'm going to go to my old house and get my things from there, but other than that I don't think I'm doing anything." I said and Abby just nodded and drank some of her orange juice.

"Maybe…" She started with a blush, "You could teach me how to fly?" She asked and began eating her cereal immediately. I smiled big.

"Of course! I just need to get my things. I better go now then so we have more time to practice." I said excitedly. I jumped up and put my dishes in the sink.

"Don't hurry, Brooke. Abby still has some homework she has to do. Arithmetic and whatnot." Mrs. Shunpike said and I remembered that Abby was home schooled. I went to a private school until I had turned 11 and then I went to Hogwarts. I bet home schooling was easy. I just nodded and pulled on the outfit I had borrowed from Mrs. Shunpike on the first day, newly washed.

"I won't be long. Maybe an hour or two." I said heading back into the kitchen, motioning towards Abby and Mrs. Shunpike. I collected myself and dissapparated. I arrived at my old home. I knew Hunter was at work, and thank Goodness for that. I never wanted to see him again. I unlocked the door with my key. I was unsurprised to find the small apartment splattered with clothes, some I recognized as my ex boyfriends and others I had never seen. I spied a rather frilly piece of lingerie balled and thrown on the couch. I went immediately to the main and only bedroom and gathered my clothes from the drawers making them smaller with a Shrinking charm and quickly shoved them into my only suitcase. I had gotten that suitcase as a present from my mom on my 17th birthday, just days afterward I had used it to pack my things and leave. I took all of the toiletries I could find of mine and stuffed them in the bag. I grabbed my perfumes, my photographs, my books, anything I recognized as my own, whether Hunter agreed or not. Then again that was another reason I came when he was working. I was easily done in 30 minutes. I shrunk my suitcase and carried all of my possessions in the palm of my hand. When I had come off the bus 4 days ago I had only brought what I felt was important at the time. In my rage I had thrown anything I could lay my hands on into my tote bag, I had left in the surprising time of only 5 minutes. Only when I arrived at Stan's house did I realize I had a tote bag full of silverware and magazines. I had also taken the remote to Hunter's stupid 52 inch TV. I hope he had fun getting up to change the channel. I left the flat and locked the door behind me. I tossed my unwanted key into his mailbox and disapparated back to Stan's house.

I didn't see Stan again until the next day at 8:32 pm. I was beginning to worry. The day before I had spent the entire time teaching Abby how to fly a broom and when she got the hang of it we played a revised quidditch match with apples. She was actually bearable to be with once she warmed up to me. I was glad to say that Abby looked at me now with the same adoration that she looked at her brother with. The next day we played our newly invented quidditch game for a few hours until we got bored and I taught her how to play wizard chess. She beat me the second game we played. I started worrying about Stan's absence at 4 pm. He hadn't been home for nearly 2 days!

"Dear, don't worry. He's usually gone this long. I know you miss him but he needs to work." She said exasperatedly as I asked her for the 5th time. "What about you? When do you need to return to work?" I took an apple from the counter and bit into it. I loved when people asked me this.

"I work at the new restaurant in Diagon Alley, Bill's Steak's." I said and she nodded. "We passed by it a few times when we went to Diagon Alley."

"I saw it. Wasn't it closed for renovations though?" She said and picked up and apple of her own.

"Yep, I get paid leave until January." I said nonchalantly. I could hardly believe my luck when my boss had told me. I had just barely started working there a month ago and now I got so much time off, paid and everything. All right, so I was getting just a few dollars of minimum wage but whatever.

"That's a month and a half away!" Mrs. Shunpike said excitedly and I nodded and smiled.

"I know," My grin got a devilish tint to it. We sat down to eat not long after that. I looked at the door expectantly all through dinner hoping that after this bite of corn Stan would come in bearing presents. We washed dishes quietly and Abby grumbled about not being able to use magic. As Abby headed off to bed, Mrs. Shunpike brewed some tea for her and me.

"So…" I started awkwardly. Usually Abby had started the conversations by a silly comment or a grumble, but now there was nothing to talk about.

"I hope you can stay until Christmas! You'll be able to meet Maddie and Tyler!" Mrs. Shunpike said suddenly.

"I don't think I'll stay that long. I needed to start looking for someone who needs a flat mate today," I said and drank my tea. I saw the grin fade off Mrs. Shunpike's face.

"Well, I just don't want you to think you're a bother. I don't know what Stanley's told you but you're the first girl he's brought home. I don't even think he's even mentioned another girl besides you," She said looking at me lovingly. She needed to stop looking at me like that. She was so nice and caring. I almost felt like she was my own mom for a few seconds there. I quickly shook the notion out of my head.

"I really like your son, Mrs. Shunpike," I said, looking at the steam rising out of my tea. "I just don't know about… anything…" I finished lamely and looked at Mrs. Shunpike who was smiling a sad smile.

"I have no doubt you two will work it out. In the meantime, you are welcome to stay in this house as long as you want," She said. I immediately stood up and hugged her. Her arms were already outstretched when I reached that side of the table and she wrapped me into a tight hug. Instead of awkwardly standing there like I had the last time, I wrapped my arms around her. She smelled like Stan, cinnamon. And that's when I heard the lock on the door turn and in popped Stan, looking happy from a successful day of work. He saw me, tears clinging to my eyes as I slipped out of Mrs. Shunpike's grip. He looked concerned and immediately put the bag he was carrying down. He went over to us and took my hand in his.

"What's the matter?" He said concerned. I laughed and glanced at Mrs. Shunpike how beamed and smiled a smile like no other.

"It's nothing, just girl talk," Mrs. Shunpike said for me. She got up and put her mug into the sink. She walked briskly up the stairs, not bothering to look back. Stan still kept his worried look, not even noticing his mom. He squeezed my hand and I realized I still had yet to pull back.

"I missed you," He said shyly looking down at the tiled floor and before I knew what I was doing I reached up and wrapped my arms around his neck.

"I missed you too," I mumbled into his shoulder. He hesitantly placed his hands on my back and rubbed his calloused palms in small circular motions on my upper back and placed his head on the top of mine. We stayed like this for a while, days may have passed and it wouldn't have mattered. I shyly started to pull away.

"How long are we supposed to be just friends?" He said laughing and releasing me. He raced back to the landing where he had left his bag and went back over to me. "I stopped at the store on the way home and got you something," He said with a recognizable grin. He took out a rectangular package and handed it to me. It was a chocolate frog. I grinned and eagerly ripped open the package. Over the summers we would always trade cards as we swapped stories of the past weeks. For sometime we were meeting so regularly that neither of us had time to get cards to trade. I looked down at the card with a big grin as I tossed the chocolate frog to Stan. He merrily began to eat it. I was surprised to see that in my hand there was a Harry Potter card. His lighting scar bared boldly on his forehead. I gasped; I got someone that everyone in the wizarding world knew of. It must be really rare. He was so popular that I had just seen a newspaper article in the Daily Prophet announcing his engagement to some redhead qudditch star. The lucky bastard. Stan was good looking and all but Harry Potter…I sighed dreamily. Stan peered over at the card and gasped as well.

"I had him on the bus once or twice," He said proudly. "He was real nice." I stared at him. Stan had met Harry Potter? I squealed and he got a smug look on his face. "Sure did," I slapped him on the shoulder. The lucky bastard. He yawned and I noticed it was only 9 at night.

"Were you up all night on the bus?" I asked him. I remembered nights in the summers where we would talk all night into the morning when the sun was just beginning to rise in the horizon, but I had never seen him actually sleep on the bus.

"No, when there's no one on I take a quick nap in one of the beds. Usually I only get 5 minute increments, but it's enough." He laughed and took my hand. "But that's not the point. Tell me what you've been up to." He looked at me anxiously. I quickly took my hand out of his when I realized his closeness. I cursed to myself remembering I had initiated the hug just minutes earlier yet I couldn't hold his hand. He didn't look surprised in the least, in fact it seemed as if he'd been expecting it. He smiled still waiting for my account of the day's endeavors. I just then realized I had forgotten to act awkward around him. Everything seemed as if it was back to normal. The clumsy encounter yesterday morning was quickly forgotten. I laughed, shaking my head. He did all of this on purpose. I took a shaky breath in as he looked deeply into my eyes and told him what had happened.


	6. A Chip Off the Old Block

Disclaimer- I don't own Harry Potter- JK Rowling does

A/N: I didn't want to put out this chapter until I got a review but mark my words, I will not put out the next chapter until I get at least 1 review.

Thanks for sticking with me this far for the people who have read all the chapters.

Two weeks had passed and then it was December. The weather became chillier and I had begun wearing a jacket to go outside each day. I started off each morning with a shower and getting dressed. I would then hop downstairs to eat breakfast, and then play a quick game of wizard chess with Abby. No longer did she complain about everything I did or even grumble, now she beamed up at me and waited for approval. I loved it. Abby had become my adoptive sister. After our daily chess game we would go outside and play our makeshift quidditch game. At lunchtime Stan would come home from work. He left each morning before I woke up and came back at 12. Every time Stan came home at exactly 12, never a minute early or late, I could here Mrs. Shunpike telling him how proud she was that he worked a regular schedule now. He would just smile and kiss her cheek. Then Stan and I would spend the rest of the day doing whatever the hell we wanted, whether it be another round of quidditch, a game of gobstones or even touring Diagon Alley. On days we spent on the familiar streets of Diagon Alley Stan was stopped by everyone. Various people would come over to him and thank him for taking them on the Knight Bus. Each time this happened I couldn't help but break out into a huge smile and beam with pride. One morning, after a particularly good trip to Diagon Alley, I woke up to find Stan sitting in his bed, reading a piece of parchment. I looked at the clock to see it was 8 in the morning. Why hadn't he gone to work yet?

"Stan?" I said in a question. He jumped and looked over at me in surprise.

"I thought you were sleeping," He said gruffly. He slipped the piece of paper under his pillow and stood up.

"What are you still doing here? I thought you had work," I said, my eyebrows furrowed. Something was wrong; Stan was never late to school. Stan had a blank face and he hadn't seemed to hear me.

"We need to get out of here. Let's go somewhere." He said standing up suddenly. He raced over to his closet where my clothes and his both shared the cramped space. He threw a dress of mine at me as he pulled out jeans a t-shirt for himself. He stripped down right in front of me. I blushed and turned away quickly. What was he talking about? "What are you doing? We need to leave!" He said loudly throwing my jacket at me. The zipper hit my lip and I felt blood begin to slowly pulsate out of it. He looked at me shocked. "Sorry." He mumbled and stalked out of the room. I swallowed the blood on my lip and quickly threw on the dress Stan had handed me, it was particularly worn, black knitted and knee-length. I threw on my jacket and slipped on my shoes. I said an incantation under my breath as I grabbed my wand from my dresser and my lip stopped bleeding immediatley. I only had a chance to glance at myself in the mirror in my hurry and saw a rather bad looking scab. I shrugged off my insecurities and opened the door quickly determined to follow Stan. "Shh" He whispered from his position directly to the left of the door. He grabbed my hand and we side-along apparated. I wasn't ready for this and felt as if a bucket of ice cold water had been poured on me as well as the usual horrible feeling known as apparation. I felt as if I was being turned inside out. We landed some time afterward in an unfamiliar place. All around me were houses, most of them looking alike, in columns and uneven rows. The hedges were perfectly cut and all the cars were shiny. We had landed in front of a smaller house, the door painted bright red and the hedges slightly untrimmed, although the house was beautiful it looked disgustingly out of place.

"Where are we?" I said when I found my voice again. I looked over at Stan but he was too busy pacing that he didn't hear me. "STAN!" I yelled to him. He looked up as if noticing I was there for the first time. "Tell me what's going on!" I said. How dare he apparate me to an unknown place and not tell me what was happening. He walked over to me.

"Your lip looks pretty bad," He put a finger where the scab was. He took it off as I flinched. "Sorry about that," I shrugged him off and stepped away.

"Where are we? Why are we in this muggle neighborhood? Why are we here?" I demanded. He sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

"My dad," He started and looked to me, "He moved here. I've told you about my dad before, right?" I nodded although Stan rarely talked about his dad.

"You've told me that he left you guys when you were in your fourth year of Hogwarts and that's why you had to drop out and support your family." I said quietly. Stan hated talking about his dad. I guessed this was his house that we were standing in front of. We had come to his father, hadn't we?  
"Yes, but I never told you about why he left. My father was very independent, very self-sufficient. He grew up in an all-magical family, dating back for ages. He worked at the Ministry in Magical Cooperation, you know? He had a good head on his shoulders; he was going places. He married my mom when the got out of Hogwarts and they had me soon afterward. I always knew my father was different. He didn't like to do everything by magic; he liked to teach us lessons by making us go days without magic. My mother thought he was just spontaneous and smiled at him when he did things like the dishes or mow the lawn the muggle way. After Abby was born, he turned even…funnier. He didn't use magic at all and he even frowned when Mum started using magic in front of us. I guess I should have saw it coming. 3 months after Abby was born he just left. He went off to live in the muggle world. He sent the papers to my mum and that was the last thing we heard of him. Mum thought this was just a temporary thing, and sometimes I wonder it she still does, she's still in love with him. I mean she didn't even change her last name! I hadn't heard from him since. So this morning I got an owl with this letter," He pulled out the piece of paper he had been looking at that morning. It was creased most likely because he had bent it so many times. "Well, he gave me his address. He wants me, and the kids, to come and visit him." He looked so angry I could see the fury in his eyes. I didn't say anything, but then again how could I? What would I say? 'Well that sucks?' He apparently didn't need reinforcements to continue. "This is his house." He jammed his finger to the house with the red door. He sighed and pushed his hair back once more. "But that's not the worst part. He's remarried. He has kids. Muggle kids. They don't even know their dear old dad is a wizard. And he expects us to come and visit with him, like what he did was all right. I would never visit him," He spat angrily. I stared silently.

"Well then why are we here?" I said trying to make some sense of all of this. His mad look drained out and was replaced by a confused one.

"Well, I don't know. I just thought… I'd give him a piece of mind?" He asked me as if the thought suddenly occurred to him. My eyebrows furrowed.

"Ok, I admit your dad is horrible. You shouldn't talk to him if you don't want to. But you obviously miss him. I think we should come over for tea and see what he has to say. And then afterward you can make your final decision on what is best for your family and yourself," I said calmly. I couldn't help but think of money. If Stan's dad wanted to see his kids again, wouldn't he have to pay some child support, even if he hadn't before? That means that Stan would be able to afford his own expenses and not have to worry about his brother and sister's fees. "Do you want me to come along or do you want to go by yourself?" I asked him. I spaced the words seperately and suddenly felt as if I was talking to a toddler.

"You can come. I mean, please come with me," He said his eyebrows furrowing deeper. I laughed.

"Well I mean you already practically forced me here captive and you bloodied my lip. I don't think I have a choice." I said. I received a single forced laugh for Stan and then he lapsed back into stony silence. He rigidly walked to the front door, his hands moving jerkily at his sides. I glanced at him from the side. He wanted to go to his dad's house since he'd gotten his letter that morning; he just needed someone to persuade him a little more. Why else would he apparate us here? I rang the doorbell since Stan couldn't. All though he tried to hide it, I could see his hands were shaking. A busty blonde woman answered the door. I could have sworn I saw her on the cover of playboy magazine last month.

"Hello?" She said glancing from Stan and then to me. "Do I know you?" Her perfectly shaped eyebrows dipped down. Her brown eyes, surrounded by clumps of mascara, showed no recognition. Stan cleared his throat.

"I got a letter," He held up the letter so the blonde could read it, though admittedly I don't think she could read past a third grade level, "From my dad." He stopped as if he had done enough explaining. The blonde's face lit up and her mouth, covered in no doubt 'Kissable Pink' lip-gloss, braced a huge grin.

"Stan?" She asked him. Stan nodded as jerkily as he walked. Before he could protest she pulled him into a big hug, her fake boobs squashing into his small frame. He looked embarrassed.

"Are you my dad's-" But the blonde cut him off.

"And you must be Maddie!" She squealed her arms outstretched.

"Oh no. I'm not-" But before I could say anything the woman pulled me into a huge bear hug. My head barely reached her chin. She was very tall, taller than me, and almost the same height as Stan. Which I was saying a lot since Stan was 6'4". She quickly released me and I jumped back a foot in a half. Ugh, she probably gave me some sort of disease. With Mrs. Shunpike I enjoyed her hug, her slim but curved figure was very relaxing and I felt like a mom was holding me. While with Blondie, I felt as if I was hugging a cactus, all of her bones poked out since she was so skinny, good thing her bosom made up for all of that. I knew the reason Mr. Shunpike had married her. "I'm not Maddie." I said as she backed up. She pouted her lips and looked disappointed.

"Well, I know you can't be Abby, I thought she was 9." She said. I noticed a cold breeze and wished she would let us inside already.

"She is." Stan answered. "This is my…" He trailed off and looked at me.

"Your what?" Blondie said impatiently.

"This is Brooke, my girlfriend?" He said with a questioned. I rolled my eyes but blushed at the same time. I could play girlfriend for this visit. That's what I was, wasn't it? I shook my head to myself, no we were just friends. That's what we'd been fighting about for the past 2 weeks. I mentally face-palmed. I looked up into Blondie's face and nodded with a smile. A self-satisfied grin played on Stan's lip as I shook the woman's hand. "I didn't get your name…" Stan said trailing off.

"I'm Sunny." She said and smiled. I mimed barfing as she reopened the door to the house and led us inside. Stan loudly snorted. But he saved it by making it an unbelievable cough.

"You know you should get that cough looked at," I said winking as we followed Sunny. I grimaced at that name. Personally I liked 'Blondie' better. She led us past a few doors and turned into a kitchen on the right. Unlike the Stan's house where all the furniture was worn down, everything at Mr. Shunpike's house looked brand new. I felt like I was walking into an Ikea catalogue. Sunny set to making some tea as Stan and I sat down on the uncomfortable chairs. "She seems… perky." I said quietly. Stan snorted again as Sunny came back in bearing all matching cups, no scratching to be seen. I drank the probably designer tea as Sunny sat down across from me.

"Your father should be home soon, he's dropping off Avery at school." She beamed at us. I looked down at my watch and was surprised to see it was only 8:30 in the morning. "Did your father tell you about wanting you and your siblings over every month or so?" She asked as she set down her tea. I saw Stan stiffen at the mention of this. He stayed silent. I felt the need to protect him.

"Maddie and Tyler are at school and don't get many breaks except for Christmas and Easter and Abby has home schooling everyday, so their schedules might be hard to juggle. Stan's busy too, he has a job." I beamed proudly. Sunny turned to Stan with surprise in her eyes.

"What do you do for a living, Stan?" She asked curious. Stan looked at her excitedly. He was waiting to brag to someone.

"I drive the… a bus…" He finished lamely. I turned to him and glared, driving the Knight Bus was better than driving any old bus.

"He drives the Knight-" But I was stopped mid sentence as Stan kicked my shin. I glared at him again.

"Do you have any creamer?" Stan asked Sunny, not taking his gaze from me. I heard her mumble something and took off towards the kitchen.

"She's a muggle!" Stan whispered loudly, "She thinks dad's muggle. She doesn't know anything about-" Sunny came scurrying back in with creamer in her hand. Stan stared blankly at it until he realized he had asked for it. He put the creamer into his tea, although I knew for a fact that Stan took his tea black with two sugars. I heard footsteps coming from the hallway that we had just walked in from and a gray haired man at least in his 40's came towards to the table. On his hip was a girl about three or four who was sucking her thumb. His nose was so long, he took on a bird like appearance. I looked up to him and saw where Stan got his height from. He looked at Stan and me and slowly put the girl he was carrying into her mother's arms. He never took his eyes off of Stan though and I don't think Stan did so much as to blink. Stan's father stepped towards his son but pulled back and returned to Sunny's side.

"Son, it's been so long." He said in the voice I heard Stan use when he is nervous. Stan nodded slowly. "I guess I should say I'm sorry for taking off like that but I just couldn't lead a life like that anymore. I don't expect you to understand." He seemed at least a little bit remorseful and I was grateful for that. I could still see anger boil up in Stan's eyes.

"I would have at least have the digintiy to visit my kids every now and again," Stan flared. Mr. Shunpike turned to me now, just noticing I was there.

"Maddie, I know this has been hard on you. You've grown so big, I barely recognize you." He said to me. I blushed crimson. Please don't, I begged silently. Please just be joking.

"You can't even recognize your own daughter?" Stan said stupefied.

"I said I barely recognize her. Don't put words in my mouth. I think I would know my daughter when I see her," Mr. Shunpike said angrily. I wanted to laugh but my tongue was stuck to my mouth. It was an innocent mistake when Sunny had said it but when Mr. Shunpike made the same mistake it was just wrong. Even his wife stared at him irreconcilably. Stan stood up and I followed suit.

"C'mon, _Brooke_," He said showing emphasize on my name. Mr. Shunpike looked dumbstruck. "I think maybe I'll let the others come over here," He said turning to his father. "Not because I approve but because after all you are their father, but don't expect to see me ever again." Stan stalked from the room and I grabbed his hand as I followed him out, just to make Mr. Shunpike feel even worse. We exited the house and apparated back to Mrs. Shunpike's house. Our hands were still clutched together but I had no inclination to pull away. I felt Stan put his head on my shoulder. I looked over to see the mop of brown hair on my shoulder and I smoothed it down for him. I felt him shudder and I wondered if he was crying. It was my turn to rub his back. I led him onto the porch swing and I sat down and let him cry on my shoulder, my shirt getting wetter by the minute. I kissed his forehead continually and murmured nonsense words to him. He eventually quieted down. I barely felt the chill winter air and when he kissed my cheek I felt like it was over 100 degrees. "Thanks," He whispered into my ear. He brushed one of my windswept hairs behind me ears. He stood up suddenly. "Don't expect me to cry like that ever again. Consider that all the tears you will ever see from me." He said and I could see a faint blush creep into his cheeks. I stood up next to him and grabbed his hand as we walked through the front door of his house. "So… you're my girlfriend, huh?" He said nonchalantly and a blush was on my face in mere seconds. I hit his arm.

"I only agreed to that because you said it!" I lied. He however seemed unimpressed.

"Uh huh, yeah, sure," He smiled down at me.

"Friends," I said firmly. _Not_, my mind whispered.

"Friends," Stan repeated, laughing.


	7. Qudditch

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter- JK Rowling

A/N: Alright, I get it, no one wants to write a review. I'll stop asking so you may keep on enjoying or hating Knight Bus (I don't know which one because, you know... no reviews). So here's chapter six, I thought it was a little rushed but dunno.

I woke up the next day with a big smile on my face. The day before had been had been great, despite the little snag with Stan's father. We had come home to find Abby and Mrs. Shunpike had gone shopping. It was surprising that we made it for more than 5 minutes before giggling. It seemed that everything I said or everything Stan did was hilarious. Stan's mother and sister had come home to find us on the floor with tears rolling down our eyes, from the latest corny joke I had said. Stan went to work when his family came home and worked until dinner. I occupied myself with a game of exploding snap with Abby, which she was unsurprisingly good at. Stan decided not to tell his mom about his visit to his dad's and I couldn't say I disagreed. Eventually he would tell her and his siblings would go over to spend time with their dad. I crossed my fingers that Mr. Shunpike felt bad about not seeing his kids and paid Maddie and Tyler's Hogwarts expenses. They would mean Stan wouldn't have to pay for them and he could save up for something he wanted… like maybe his own house… or a diamond ring with my name on it. I blushed deep red at just the thought. You're just friends, I reminded myself. I should tell him I would be perfectly fine dating him, I thought. My mother's voice had been extremely quieter when I was with Stan now, although still audible. But now whenever I looked at Stan, all I could hear in my head was You Make My Dreams by Hall & Oates. By no means was I in love, not in the slightest. Love takes years of trust and companionship to build up. A little voice in the back of my head said, "You've known each other 8 years." I buried my face in the pillow. I heard a chuckle and I turned to my right. Stan was watching me intently with a smile on his face.

"You have the weirdest expressions. I can only imagine what you're thinking," he smiled at me. He walked into his room and went to the closet beside the bed. After two weeks of living in the same room, Stan's things and mine were barely differential. My shoes were placed next to his at the edge of the bed. My jacket hung over his on the peg on his door. As Stan opened the door to the closet I could see our clothes mixed together. Every now and then I would wear one of his shirts on days when we stayed close to the house. "Sorry to disappoint but Mum is gone today." He turned to me with a shirt in his hands. "She's gone to Hogwarts, Tyler had an accident after he fell off his broom during a quidditch match. It was pretty serious but he's alright now," He said and the smile wiped off of his face. I gasped. "Mum was in hysterics when she got the owl. I'm surprised she didn't wake you up. She was bawling enough tears to fill the Atlantic Ocean. But since Mum's not here we've got to take care of Abby and no matter how fun it seems I think Mum would kill me if she came home to find us playing quidditch. I say we not push it," He laughed sadly. Poor Tyler! I hadn't met him personally but I had heard enough from Mrs. Shunpike, Abby and Stan to make me feel like we were already friends. Tyler, a Slytherin, was 15 and as Stan said "the daredevil of the family," or as Abby put it "The Stupid One." I giggled at the memory of Abby's face when I had asked about him. Stan stripped down in front of me, taking his time pulling the shirt off of his scarred frame, and I turned away blushing. I hope this wasn't becoming a habit- what bullshit, I loved every moment of this. I peeked over my shoulder at Stan's chiseled chest and broad shoulders, before I could help it a sigh escaped my mouth. Stan looked over to me before I could whip my head in the other direction and smiled. "You like what you see?" He flexed his arms, he even went as far as to kiss his left arm, and I laughed.

"Don't count on it," I said grabbing my clothes and heading towards the bathroom. Once I was dressed I headed downstairs to find Abby munching on Bernie Bott's Every Flavor Jelly Beans. She slipped a rancid white colored one into her mouth not actually looking at it. She chewed it twice before her eyes got wide and she spit it out into her hand.

"Gross! Rotten Milk!" She said getting up and throwing the half chewed bean into the trashcan.

"Hey Abby." I said taking a seat next to her on the loveseat when she had returned. "What do you want to do today?" I asked and she shrugged her shoulders.

"I was thinking we could play quidditch and then some gobstones," She said in a bored tone. I cringed.

"Maybe quidditch isn't the best idea right now," I said trying to look anywhere but her disappointed face. As if on cue, Stan came down the stairs and saw us. He quickly walked over and sat down beside me, squeezing me into Abby and Abby into the couch.

"This is a loveseat, Stan. So, do you know what that means? It means there's only supposed to be two people on here. Let's count together. How many people are on the loveseat? 1…2…3…" I said as if talking to a kindergartener. I laughed at my own cleverness though he frowned. He appeared as if he hadn't heard me and handed me a piece of paper.

"I just got an owl from _him_. Read what it says." He said, his voice clearly showing disgust. I made out the crisp clean writing.

Dear Stan,

I'm sorry about yesterday. I didn't realize. Please forgive me. To make it up, I bought you some quidditch tickets. I knew what a big fan you were of the sport as a child. I've included tickets for you, your girlfriend, Abby and your mother.

Sincerely,

Your Father

I could actually picture Sunny breathing down his throat to send his son a letter. How did he even buy tickets? It was for a magical sport wasn't it? I looked over at Stan to see what he thought of all this. He just looked at me as if it was my choice to decide how he felt. Abby, who had been reading over my shoulder, gasped in shock.

"You saw Dad?" She questioned her older brother. He hung his head in guilt and looked away.

"What day are the tickets for?" I asked indifferently. Stan handed me 4 slips of laminated paper as 3-D holographic displays of Puddlemere United and the Chudley Cannons swam in front of our eyes obviously from a previous game, I could only make out flashes of oranges and blue as the players quickly swept on their brooms.

"Come and see Puddlemere United versus the Chudley Cannons today at 11 am." A booming voice coming from the tickets said. I glanced at my watch. It was 9 am.

"We could go, I know you two want to." He stopped and then took in a breath as a confused look crossed his face. "But if we went to the game wouldn't that mean I forgive him?" Stan asked me. Abby shook her head before I had time to respond.

"No! He just wants us to have a good time! He seems like a nice bloke though, doesn't he? We should go! We should!" Abby said talking fast. In an afterthought she added, "Can you introduce to me sometime, Stan?" Abby's eyes were so wide that they looked they would pop out of their sockets if they had the chance. I remembered that Abby had only known her father until she was three months old. I had to choke back tears. This poor girl has never met her father. She had to ask to be introduced! Stan seemed to be thinking the same thing and nodded slowly. He looked sadly down at her and ruffled his baby sister's hair.

We flooed to the stadium at 10, an hour later. We wanted to be early enough to find our seats in the unfamiliar stadium. I was bubbling with excited; I had never been to a professional quidditch match, although I had been to one baseball game with my mother. We had gotten the tickets free and even then we left in the 2nd inning. I had spent 4 years watching quidditch at school to get the hang of it. The last two of those years were spent plucking up the courage to finally try out. Stan however looked like he had been to dozens of professional games. He briskly and easily moved through the crowd and we found our seats in less than 15 minutes. Abby and I stared in shock at everything, from the vendors floating overhead to the cannons bursting loudly down on the field. Everyone was talking so loudly, I could barely hear what Abby was chatting so animatedly about next to me. Our seats were pretty close to the field and I was glad that we had a good view. Stan father must have spent a good amount of money on these seats to get us this close to the pitch. The game started a while afterward and Abby and I couldn't take our eyes off of the players. We sat on the edge of our seats as our eyes searched the sky above but even then I could only see flashes of blue and orange. I heard the occasion "20 points to Puddlemere" from an announcer, obviously using the Sonorus spell. Abby and I both cheered when ever a score was called out, not caring which team it was. Stan wasn't really watching the game but instead Abby and my reactions. I would hear him chuckle after I would let out a rather loud whoop, or snort when Abby starting chanting, "Go, Fight, Win!" After a while, my neck began to cramp from looking up for such a long time, I stretched spied a vendor selling hotdogs passing by our row. I called him over loudly. I was in such a euphoric mood, I gladly paid the extra money to get Abby, Stan and I all hotdogs, not caring that I had just spent 20 dollars for crappy tasting sausages. By the time we finished eating both Stan and Abby had ketchup framing their mouths. I sighed and rolled my eyes. I took out my wand and said a cleaning charm and they were both sanitized, their trophies wiped off their grinning faces. I smiled to myself at my fine work. By then the Chudley Cannons were losing by a whooping 320- 0. Abby got particularly motivated then and we both cheered for the underdogs, the Chudley Cannons.

"Go Cannons!" We both screamed until our voices grew hoarse. So maybe we didn't know who played on their team, but it was the enthusiasm that counts, right? After an hour or so, Benjy Williams spied and dived for the snitch with Galvin Gudgeon on his heels. I sucked in my breath and heard Abby do the same. I tried ignored the chuckle coming from Stan's direction and I slid so far to the edge of my seat I almost fell off. Williams caught the snitch in the end and Puddlemere United won by a whopping 470-20.

"That was so exciting!" I squealed to Abby and she nodded in agreement. "I was really hoping that the Chudley Cannons would win though." A red headed man passing by stopped in the aisle and looked at me for some seconds, nodding hyperactively.

"You and me both! I thought this time they were really going to win." He said exasperatedly. I nodded in agreement.

"I screamed so loud when they made that one goal. I thought they might have had a chance after that," I agreed. He nodded his head fast in agreement I'm surprised his head didn't get whiplash. I couldn't help but notice how badly the orange Chudley shirt he was wearing clashed with his hair.

"C'mon, mate, let's go," Said an unruly haired boy coming behind the red haired one. I waved goodbye and returned to Abby, she seemed to be even more excited. I looked over her head at Stan who was shooting daggers at the red haired man as he exited the stadium. He looked angry with me. Oh goodness, he couldn't be jealous? I waggled my eyebrows at him.

"I'm not jealous!" He said a little to defensively. I laughed and smiled at him.

"Don't worry. I only have eyes for you," I said batting my eyes exaggeratedly. "Oh gosh. I have something in my eyes!" I said and we both broke into laughs. Abby obviously felt left out. She tugged on my jacket sleeve. I looked down at her.

"I want to be a professional quidditch star when I grow up." She said. I nodded down at her. She looked so determined.

"That seems like a great idea! Remember to give me tickets to your first game." I smiled at her and she smiled back.

"I'll make sure to get you a suite!" She said giggling. I took Stan and Abby's hands and we headed out of the stadium.

We arrived at 1 back at the Shunpike's house. I was starving. I only had that hotdog from the game. Abby grumbled dragging her feet all the way to the front door.

"I'm going to die if I don't get any food!" She said, clutching onto her stomach. Stan chuckled and unlocked the door. We walked to the kitchen. How strange… I thought we had turned the lights off before we left. Did I hear the whistle for the kettle? My suspicions were affirmed when we rounded the bend and saw Mrs. Shunpike sitting at the kitchen table with a stony look on her face. I heard Stan gasp. Ok, so we weren't in trouble or anything, right? She hadn't really forbid from doing anything related to quidditch. And it's not like we could have hidden it now anyway, Abby was proudly adorned in a Chudley Cannons t-shirt and matching cap. Mrs. Shunpike looked up at us as we entered.

"Hi, Mum, how's Tyler?" Stan said feigning confidence.

"He's fine. He only fell 3 feet to the ground and even then he had a cushioning spell put under him. He has a sprained wrist but the nurse took care of that even before I'd gotten there." She said stiffly. I noticed a piece of paper faced down on the table that looked suspiciously like the once Stan had shown us earlier. "What have you been up to?" She said with the same poker face. Judging by her looks she already knew. Abby, thank goodness, jumped happily into her mothers arm and I could see a small smile on Mrs. Shunpike's lips.

"It was so much fun, Mum! We went and saw the Chudley Cannons play on this HUGE quidditch pitch! Brooke bought us hotdogs and Stan got me this awesome shirt and the hat!" She said excitedly. Mrs. Shunpike looked glad her daughter had had so much fun.

"That's great, honey, I need to talk to your brother though for a moment, so could you take Brooke upstairs with you?" She said, not as a question but as a demand. Abby's eyes got huge again and she grabbed my arm and practically dragged me upstairs. She took me to her room. Although I had lived here for almost 3 weeks, I had never been to Abby's room. Unlike her personality, the room was painted a light pink with a big canopy bed in the center. Toys covered every inch of her floor and as I made my way of to her bed I stepped on many a doll.

"Oh man. Stan is in so much trouble! When mom has to "talk" with me, I always get an earful." Abby said concerned for her brother. She was so cute. And then, as if on cue, I heard a yell from downstairs.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DIDN'T WANT TO TELL ME?" Mrs. Shunpike yelled. I knew Stan should have hidden the letter better. I didn't even think Mrs. Shunpike was mad that we went unannounced to a quidditch game, but more about Stan's recent visit with his father. I heard a muffled response from Stan. I cursed him for his shy disposition with his mother. I knew I should probably cast a Silencing charm over Abby's bedroom to spare her innocent ears, but my curiosity got the better of me. I knew I should have bought those Extendable Ears when I had a chance at Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. I walked back over to her door and motioned for Abby to be quiet. She put a finger over her lips and followed me to the landing above the stairs. From here I could hear everything happening down stairs. Sadly I could only see a tiny portion of the kitchen table and I could see neither Stan nor Mrs. Shunpike

"I don't understand. Why would he think Brooke was Maddie? Maddie is 17." Mrs. Shunpike said in a quieter voice.

"I don't know Mum." Stan said quiet still, "So we left. And it was stupid and everything but at least Brooke held my hand." He proclaimed proudly. I blushed. He was so stupid sometimes.

"So he's remarried? He has kids?" Mrs. Shunpike barely whispered. Her voice had choked up on the last word.

"Oh Mum. It's his fault. He doesn't deserve you." Stan said and I could hear rummaging and I imagined Stan was hugging him mother.

"But why did he send you quidditch tickets?" Mrs. Shunpike said after some time. Stan said nothing. I looked out of the railings trying to get a view of them. I just needed to lean a few more inches to be able to gaze directly into the kitchen. I felt Abby tug my sleeve; I swatted at her and tried to squeeze my head through the railings.

"What are you doing?" Came a voice behind me. I jumped and my head hit the railing, rather hard if I must say. I rubbed the inevitable bruise as I turned around. Stan was standing at the bottom of the steps, with Mrs. Shunpike behind him; her eyes were red and puffy. I blushed deep red. I turned to Abby and glared she shrugged and shot me a look that said 'I tried to warn you'. I grinned sheepishly at the two people at the bottom of the stairs. Stan looked unsurprised while Mrs. Shunpike looked slightly amused.

"Oh you know… Well Abby and I, we were playing with a ball… yeah and it bounced away so we were trying to see where it went," I said making up a lie as I went. Abby nodded her head and supported me. I stood up and looked over at them. "Haha, but I don't see it out here. Maybe it… rolled back into Abby's room?" I said scurrying back to Abby's bedroom, with Stan's sister on my heels. As I was closing the door I saw Stan wink and before I could help myself as schoolgirl like giggle escaped my lips. I turned to Abby who looked at me as if I was insane.

"When I grow up and fall in love, I am defiantly not going to act as idiotic as you," She said grimacing.

When finally Stan came to get Abby and me for lunch, we were both starving from hunger. We tried to find a distraction from the increasingly loud rumblings coming from our stomachs by playing a quick game of Wizard Chess. But we were both so distracted we only moved our knights back and forth to the same places not making any progress. I couldn't hear anymore of the conversation between Stan and his mother and I wondered if they placed the Muffliato spell on the door. When we had gotten downstairs I could see Mrs. Shunpike's eyes were even more swollen. I tried to look away discreetly but failed miserably. I saw her busily preparing peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I walked over to island where she was making them.

"Mrs. Shunpike-" I started by she placed up a hand motioning me to stop.

"Julia, really, please just call me Julia," She said, placing her knife back into the tub of peanut butter. I glanced warily at Stan who merely shrugged.

"Julia," I started again and grimaced at the unfamiliar name, "Would you like any help? Back at my house, I was a pretty damn good sandwich maker. I hope I still have the flare though," I said with a lame attempt at humor. Mrs. Shunpike nodded appreciatively. We got lunch on the table in a remarkable 5 minutes due to our combined skill. It was relatively quiet. Mrs. Shunpike taking the place next to Abby, while I took the place next to Stan. I shivered each time Stan's leg accidentally brushed mine, but after he'd done it a few times I think he started doing it just to tease me. After Stan lightly touching knee again. I surprised myself by not pulling away. The goose bumps on my arms where slowly beginning to fade when suddenly Mrs. Shunpike loudly cleared her voice. I quickly moved my leg to its original place with a flailing motion. In the process, I knocked it on a beam, very hard. That would make it two bruises in one day. I cursed silently but quickly regained my composure quickly, like any regal woman would. Mrs. Shunpike, oblivious to my discomfort, looked over at her daughter. The 9 year old quickly swallowed the piece of crust she had in her mouth, fear in her eyes.

"Abby, how would like to meet your father?"


	8. A Hidden Diary

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter- JK Rowling does

A/N: Sorry, I just realized if that if Stan was born a year after Harry Potter, he would younger than him. Sorry about the time mistake but it worked better with the story. Don't hate me too much for it.

The next day I woke up to find that Stan was back to his usual schedule running the Knight Bus. I walked down the stairs, still adorned in my pajama bottoms and Stan's shirt and felt a cool chill as I heard racket coming from the kitchen. I shivered and looked outside. It was snowing; small white flakes were falling on the ground, slowly building up.

"Oh, Brooke. Good thing you're awake. Abby and I were just leaving. We'll probably be back late so good ahead and eat lunch." Mrs. Shunp- no, Julia said bustling around the corner as I reached the kitchen. I stared blankly at her as she grabbed Abby's hand and they side-along apparated away. I suddenly remembered that they were going to pay a visit to Abby's father, a man I had little to no respect for. The preparations had been set the night before and Abby bounced excitedly around the house all last night. I sighed looking into nothing but the big bronze wall in front of me as I slumped down in the loveseat. What the hell was I going to do today?

An hour and a carton of cereal later, I headed up towards Stan's room. Maybe I'll get some cleaning done in my boredom. Or maybe you should look for a flat, the sensible me said. I shook my head at the notion. If I got a flat, that means I would have to leave the Shunpike's. I scoffed as I opened my bedroom door- no, Stan's bedroom door. Exactly the point, sensible Brooke pointed out, you are getting way too attached to this family.

"No, I'm not," I said aloud to no one. Am I? I took Stan and mine conjoined cleaned clothes and began to fold them, separating socks from underwear. In five minutes I was done. I stared at the wall again and sat on the bed. What would I do until Stan got home? I looked around at the organized mess. Books were stacked on the bookshelf some facing opposite directions while others were just thrown in messily. I got off of the bed slowly and walked towards the black painted skinny bookshelf. Reading seemed best; I could spend three hours or more doing that. Although Stan seemed like he wouldn't be that much of a reader, I saw 50 maybe 60 different titles stacked on the tall bookshelf. I looked over a few of them, some familiar some not. I noticed several muggle titles, usually horror genres but some I saw some that bordered on romance novels. I laughed when I found a particularly worn Nicholas Spark book amongst many Stephen King novels. I browsed the lower sections of the bookshelf, squatting on my knees. I was unsurprised to find a few very racy magazines stuffed in between body building ones. I spied 12 Fail Safe Ways to Charm Witches and I couldn't help but pick it up a glance through it. I opened it to a page by random.

Lesson 2:

Young witches always appreciate compliments. Try complimenting the lady of your dreams with a comment about her hair, of in case of ugliness, her shoes. Girls are always going on about these two things. After complimenting her shoes, she will probably say something about how her feet hurt, or about a blister on her heel. Instead of agreeing with her, try complimenting a different body part such as saying how toned her legs are, or her eyes are pretty. Then, lastly, women always love when they are feeling appreciated. You should thank her about something she did in past, such as making lunch or helping you out of a tough spot.

I had to stop reading then. I was laughing so hard the book had fallen out of my lap and tears had gathered in my eyes. Is this really what men thought? I shoved the book back where I had found it and delved further. I went to the last columns. I looked over a few muggle classics and a few wizarding classics as well. I pulled out a book by Beedle the Bard. I turned to it's back and realized I had read it in Hogwarts after a few purebloods urged me to read their favorite childhood story and was about to put it back when I noticed something sticking out from where the book had previously been. The book, facing outward, was black leather and was inconspicuously hidden behind 3 or 4 books heading the right way. I took the few books that were in front of it out barely paying any attention to what they said. I pulled the dusty black leather book out and turned it over in my hands. It looked like a journal and I turned it to see that the pages were gold rimmed. I could barely contain my excitement as the thought of it being Stan's journal crossed my mind. I opened it to the front page and instead of seeing the loose fluid writing Stan used I saw a cramped tight sort of penmanship that I had only seen once before. My heart skipped a beat as I realized that it had to be Stan's father. Had Stan seen this and hidden it to stop anyone from seeing it? Or, perhaps, did Mr. Shunpike hide it here in hopes that someday Stan would find it. Before I could stop myself my eyes were scanning over the page, reading before I could stop myself.

_I haven't ever kept anything like this. A journal, I mean, and I don't know what I expect to fill it with. I doubt I will keep up with it either but Julia gave it to me as a gift for my 17__th__ birthday and I'm sure she will be greatly disappointed if I didn't write in it. For my birthday I got a gold watch from my parents with a letter of recommendation they planned on sending to the ministry. I didn't have the heart to tell them that I wanted to do was to tour the muggle world for a few years, maybe take a break from magic. I have just graduated from Hogwarts, the top of my class as expected, two weeks ago. I don't have anything else to write so goodbye. _

The entry was small and barely filled a page, the next entry was on a date that indicated it was weeks later. Instead of it being the same crisp writing, it was a little looser as if it was hurriedly scratched down.

_He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named had become increasingly active lately. After joining the ministry, Magical Cooperation, I have only heard about killings, disappearances. Murder now appears as a daily occurrence. I went into work one day to find that a fellow intern had been killed just hours earlier. I don't know how much time anybody had left. I'm proposing to Julia today, at least we'll be together when he comes for us._

I gasped. He only married her because Voldemort was on the rise? I didn't know what to think of this. I really hoped Stan hadn't read this, tainting his already imperfect picture of his father. I turned the page, getting a paper cut in the process. I sucked on my bleeding finger and read the next entry. It was set months from the previous one and was back to the clean crisp writing.

_Today is my wedding day. I am happy but nervous. I wonder if Julia will be happy enough with me. She's too pretty, too full of life, to stand me for long._

This was all it said and I noticed that the entries had become increasingly smaller. So it surprised me to find the next entry was at least two pages long. I noticed that a year had passed by and wasn't surprised.

_Today is the greatest day of my life. Harry Potter, a baby only 1 year old, has defeated He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. We don't know the specific details, but a friend told me that the boy survived a killing curse! Julia and I are both safe at last. I am smiling all of the time and my cheeks are really starting ache. Then after the news came, Julia said two words that made this perfect day even better, "I'm pregnant," It's a boy, I saw the sonogram. She said she didn't want to tell me at first, she wasn't even sure she wanted to have the baby being in such a dangerous world but now everyone is safe, Julia, me and my unborn child. I have never seen the Wizarding World celebrate this way before. This past year has been horrible and everyone is ready to move on. I haven't written in a year and so now I must fill you in on some sad news, a few months ago Julia's parents were murdered. She was very sad and cried for weeks and weeks. When the baby is born we are going to name him after her father, Stanley. She cried again when I told her that. Then just a month afterward the news of Julia's parent's deaths, I learned my brother had been murdered for resisting a death eater. He and I had an estranged relationship and he always hung around shady places so I wasn't that surprised. Julia and I have been talking and we both want 3 kids. 3 had always been a lucky number for me. Julia and I dated each other 3 years before we married, you know. I only had my brother and Julia was an only child so we do want a big family. I was born on March 3, too. I can't wait until I get to throw a foozball around in the backyard with my son. I really like foozball. Julia got me a muggle tellyvision for my birthday and I have been stuck to it all the time. That's a muggle term, not literally stuck to it, but figuratively. Julia said when the baby is born and he's old enough we can all go on an airplane to the beach. I have always wanted to know how those airplanes stay up. (A/N: Arthur Weasley?) I am so am so excited. Now Julia and I can go to the park without worrying that the people next to us could disappear in an hour's time. Peace had been restored. But now Julia is calling me and we are going to a celebration party and I will drink as much Firewhisky as one man can consume. Farewell._

My heart skipped a beat. Mr. Shunpike had talked so lovingly about his wife, why had he left her? I had known that Stan's grandparents were murdered by death-eaters; that's why he always resisted Voldemort, but I hadn't really thought of them as Mrs. Shunp- no Julia's parents. I squeezed out a few tears for her then. I could here Mr. Shunpike's voice in my head rising in excitement talking about his son. Why had their relationship estranged so much? And then I remembered that he had left. I leafed through the pages quickly, there were two months worth of entries that amounted to nothing. It only described the daily life of the Shunpike's. I turned another page quickly, grimacing as I received another paper cut, but I only saw one more entry left. It was 14 years later. I wondered why Mr. Shunpike had remembered after all those years.

_You must be wondering why I am writing in you after all these years. I am too. While packing today, I found this journal in my dresser pressed against the back mahogany drawer. Over the years, Julia and I have had three children, Stan, Maddie and Tyler. And I loved the three of them with all my heart. We had our perfect three like we always wanted. Then a year ago, Julia told me she was pregnant again, taking me completely by surprise. I could hardly believe it. Stan is already fourteen and Maddie is eight, I thought we were done. We said we were. Julia cried while she told me, and I held her and felt tears well up in my own eyes for the first time in years. When I saw Abigail's face for the first time, the same love that I had for my other 3 children consumed me, but it was different this time. I realized that, I, a 32-year-old man, already graying, have never done what I wanted to do. I know it sounds selfish and that's because it is. But should I stay and break my family apart slowly or should I quit and leave now and let them live without me? I stayed for 3 months. Then one day I was watching my 3 older children play quidditch in the yard while Julia held our baby and I just couldn't do it anymore. I can't look at Abigail with out seeing all of my regrets, staying here any longer would be hurtful to her and to me, to Stan, to Tyler and to Maddie. To most of all, my precious wife. With Julia I didn't see the passion and fire I had when I was 17, but now it had turned into little more than friendship. I packed up my things today and put my normal sized luggage by the door. I had packed the manual way, knowing full well what I was getting myself into. I kissed my children goodbye, Tyler first, 5 years old and oblivious, then Maddie, who thought it was just another business trip and then hugged my oldest son; at 14 he just had an inkling of what was going on. I couldn't look at the baby I was abandoning and quickly passed her crib as she cried loud enough for all of my other children. Julia had tears rolling down her eyes as I kissed her cheek and said my goodbye. I took my things in my hand and went out of the door. I have already broken my wand; it's pieces thrown amongst the trees surrounding the house. I am writing this down on the porch swing dreading leaving for knowledge that if I go then I can never come back. I'm leaving this here in case one day, someone will read this and give it to my youngest daughter so maybe she might be braver than me and somehow forgive me one day._

Stan came home to find me curled up in a ball on his bed with the diary in my hands. Books were spread out all over and I had barely noticed. He called my name a few times and I tried to hide the book. I used my shaking hands to slowly close the book's cover, tears still pooling in my eyes. I tried to push it back into the bookshelf but my eyes were so filled to the brim with tears I couldn't see anything except blobs. I saw Stan's figure at the door and slipped the book up my shirt to try and hide it. I really just wanted to be held by him but I sat up and smiled at him, conscious of how miserable I looked. The smile made the tears in my eyes roll down and I quickly wiped them away.

"Hey, Stan, you're home-" But before I could finish my sentence he had jumped over anything in his path and wrapped me in a huge hug.

"Shh, shh, it's alright, Brooke. If you need to cry you can cry," He said smoothing down my hair and pushing my closer into his chest. He would be able to feel the book. Tears overfilled over my eyes again as I broke away and slowly took the book I had slipped under my shirt out and gave it to him. My arm was shaking and the journal fell with a plop onto the bed. Stan's eyes filled with confusion and then suddenly dawned recognition.

"Oh… You found that?" He said softly. So he had already read it. I nodded slowly and cursed the tears forming in my eyes again. There was no need to cry this much. "I found it the morning after he left. I hid it in my bookshelf so Abby wouldn't see it," He said looking at the journal and not me.

"You don't think she'd want to read what her dad said?" I asked him quietly. I turned his head with my hand so he had no choice but to look me in the eyes. He still tried to avoid my gaze still and stared at my forehead instead.

"She's going to see him today isn't he? If he can't tell her to her face then he doesn't need to tell her at all," He said with resentment on his voice. I sighed, if Stan was going to build up a relationship with his father it would have to be gradual. He was much too stubborn for an epiphany to happen upon him one day and run into his father's embrace. I looked at him and this time he didn't look away. His gaze was fixated on me and it was my turn to blush and look away. "Are you up for a quick lunch and then an even quicker trip to Diagon Alley?" He said dropping the subject. His tone suggested things would get hurtful if we continued. "It's going to be very busy, everyone is shopping for Christmas gifts. I just need to pick out something good for Maddie and I need a girl's opinion." He said and smiled. I mentally face palmed. I had completely forgotten that Christmas was less than 3 weeks away. I remembered the conversation I'd had with Julia a just two weeks ago. I had said that I would have moved out already (A/N: See Chapter 5). But now as I sat on Stan's bed, sitting so close that our hips could have been conjoined, I didn't really want to leave. I hated freeloading but like it or not, Stan's family, in the past weeks, had became my family as well. I blushed at this thought and looked up at Stan again who was still waiting for me to answer.

"When do Maddie and Tyler get in?" I asked him. He shrugged his shoulders.

"I think they have the week before off so they're coming in on the 17th, the Saturday." He said and took my question as a 'yes'. I looked at the calendar that hung next to Stan's closet and saw it was the 11th.

"Merlin's beard!" I said and gasped. I only had six days to get presents for the whole family. Stan laughed and took my hand and we disapparated to the kitchen where we had leftovers from the night before which I graciously heated with an incantation and the flick of a wand. We headed to Diagon Alley over an hour later, we had finished our lunch in less than 20 minutes but I still had to get ready. I ignored the calls from Stan telling me to hurry up outside of the bathroom door. As we entered through the Leaky Cauldron, I wrote down my list mentally

I thought Julia would like a necklace from that peddler next to Gringrott's. If in doubt, always buy jewelry, my mother once said. I wanted to get Abby some Quidditch Keeping Gloves from Quality Quidditch Supplies. She had expressed her liking for this position yesterday as we played a quick after dinner game. For Maddie I wanted to get a new quill and some parchment, Stan told me how much his eldest sister loved writing stories. For Tyler I got some Skiving Snack boxes as well as an extendable ear to fulfill his supposed devilish taste. But for Stan, I had no idea. One by one, my mental shopping list was checked off and I still hadn't found anything for Stan. He on the other hand seemed perfectly oblivious to my exasperation. He showed me the scarf he had found at Madam Malkin's and once I okayed it, he bought it happily for his sister.

"What are you getting me?" I asked him as we stopped at Florestcue's for a quick drink. He looked at me with a smile that had a devilish tint.

"If I told you, it wouldn't be a surprise," He said and sipped on his lemonade. Great, so he'd already bought me something. We apparated home after finishing my drink, I could see the lights were turned on from the outside and knew Abby and Mrs. Shun- Julia were home. I felt Stan stiffen beside me.

"You should work on your emotions. You wear your heart on your sleeve," I snapped, still mad that he had gotten me a present. He didn't seem to hear me and instead opened the front door. We walked to the kitchen to find Abby and Julia chatting animatedly. Julia looked much happier than when I had seen her yesterday. She looked up as we rounded the corner and smiled. I saw Stan grimace.

"How'd it go?" He said taking a seat next to his mother.

"Great," Abby answered for her, "Dad is so nice and so is Sunny. I got to see our stepsisters, Avery and Riley. Avery is only a year younger than me and she is really cool. We had lunch and it was my favorite, pasta. Dad even said I could come over every other weekend if I wanted." I looked at Julia and she was absolutely beaming.

"What did he say?" Stan asked his mom exclusively. She turned to her son with a smile on her face.

"He said that if he gets the kids for Easter break and every other weekend in the summer he'll _pay for their Hogwarts tuition_," She whispered as if saying it too loud would prove it wasn't real. Stan frowned.

"Are you sure you want to sell your kids out?" Stan said angrily throwing his hands up. Julia looked at him and smiled a sad smile, she patted his arm and his expression turned into his usual poker face.

"This is a good thing, Stan. Your siblings will be able to see their dad again. You won't have to worry about all of the expenses. You can start worrying about your own family," She said motioning towards me. I blushed deep red and quickly looked at Abby and started talking randomly about the snow. I did not want to be apart of that conversation. Stan too seemed to be struck his embarrassment and sat in silence, his turning a blotchy red.

"Mum!" He said after some time. She shrugged and winked at me when I tried to inconspicuously look over my shoulder. I whipped my head towards Abby again and she was still talking about the snowman that she and her new stepsister made together, unfazed.

"Well it's true." Julia said and then a thought struck me.

"I need to talk to you, Mrs. Shu- Julia," I said and then blushed again. "I know it may not really seem weird for you…Julia. But calling you by your first name is just way to…informal." I said looking at her and she nodded understanding me completely.

"If you don't feel comfortable calling me Julia dear, please then call me 'Mum'," Mrs. Shunpike said and winked again. My blush again crept to my face and I could feel beads of sweat break out on my forehead.

"Mum!" Stan cried yet again, not looking at me but at the table. Mrs. Shunpike laughed and so did Abby.

"Um," I started and everyone at the looked at me, falling silent. "I wouldn't mind calling you Mum." I blushed even more when Stan's mouth fell open. "Not because of… you know, but because you are probably the closest thing I've ever had to a mother," I turned away from the table and stood up and walked to the stairs. "I'll take a nap, I've had a long day," I said faking a yawn and walking up the stairs. I heard someone come up behind me and before I knew it, Mrs. Shunpike was wrapping me into a big hug from behind. I turned around and she had tears in her eyes.

"I would be proud to someday call you my daughter," said Mrs. Shunpike, no, said my Mum.


	9. Stan's Siblings

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter- JK Rowling does

A/N: Enjoy :)

"Good morning, Mum," I said to Mrs. Shunpike as I entered the kitchen a few days later. I flushed, but not because I was embarrassed, but because I was deliriously happy. My mum looked up at me and smiled warmly. I could see Abby playing in the snow, making yet again another snowman. She had been making a snowman everyday for the past three days and now had a growing brood of snow-people. I got myself a cup of tea and sat next to Mum. I giggled even when I thought of the name. Stan, who was on the Knight Bus, had thought my adopted name for his mother was extremely embarrassing and each time I used it he would blush and turn away. Baby. Mum and I sat in silence and slowly sipped our tea and watched Abby through the kitchen window. "What time do Maddie and Tyler get in?" I asked her, feeling rude to break the contented silence. Mum swallowed her tea and placed down her cup.

"They get in at 4, Stan's coming with us no matter what. I told them to catch the later train because I knew Stan would be heart broken if he didn't get to meet his precious baby brother and sister at King's Cross station." She smiled and then she suddenly looked around to see if anyone was listening and leaned in close to me. "I didn't tell him but Maddie is bringing a boy home with her. They've been dating all year apparently. It seems pretty serious, but I wouldn't judge it until I've met this boy." She whispered and then let out a laugh. I remembered when I had taken Stan to my house for the first time. That was disastrous and I really hoped that didn't happen with this poor boy. I took another sip of my tea and looked to the snow people that Abby was making again. It seemed she was making her family. There was a small one with twigs in the head for the hair, I considered to be her. A taller one had a small smirk on his face I had guessed to be Stan and today she seemed to be putting the finishing touches on her mother.

"Oh!" I said remembering what I wanted to say to Mum. "I know you are going to take this the wrong way and you are probably going to refuse me but I want to pay rent. It doesn't feel right to be living in your house and not pay you anything," I told her. She opened her mouth to speak but I continued, cutting her off, "I know you are going to say that I'm like you daughter and I don't need to pay you anything but I would feel like I am freeloading, that is what I feel like. If I paid you money I wouldn't have to pretend that I was looking for a flat," I said chuckling softly. Mum stared for a while and then nodded slowly.

"Well we don't want you to have to pretend to search for flats. The horror!" She laughed and I giggled too. "I guess 50 dollars would be sufficient." She sipped her tea again and I thanked her. I didn't press for her to go any higher on the price like any decent person would since really I couldn't afford anything more than that. I got dressed quickly and took out the package I had gotten from Diagon Alley just the day before from my secret hiding place under my bed where I kept my tampons and diary. I unwrapped it from the careful packaging. I had spent an hour the day before at the junk store, browsing and re-browsing the aisles. I had finally spotted what I was looking for. It was a journal, much like the one that Stan's father had owned. Instead of being black and leather though, it was brown and had a clasp that required the secret password to open. The pages were gold lined as his father's had been. The pages instead of having plain black lines were instead enchanted to change to the owner's feelings. The pages were a pale yellow, from what I could tell meant happy, or that I had to go pee. I wrapped it with a swish and flick of my wand. I manually tied a bow on it to make it look homemade and then shoved it under my bed as I heard Abby come up the stairs.

Stan came home at the normal time and we quickly ate in silence. I was nervous, what if they didn't like me? What if they demanded I get out of their house immediately and never speak to their brother again? I settled into a daydream where in fact this did happen and Stan and I left the house hand and hand. I sighed happily and looked over at Stan who was so excited he couldn't stay still for long. He would pace around and check his watch every few seconds. Abby had been doing the same as her brother but instead of looking at her watch she would glance at her bare wrist, following her brother's movements. I stifled a laugh every time she did this. Mum seemed to be the only one unfazed. She slowly folded laundry and I was so restless I even offered to help. We left the house at 3:30, the three of us side-along apparated to an alley outside of King's Cross Station. We quickly passed the barrier to platform 9 ¾. I felt oddly sentimental. I remembered when I had left from the station in the summer of my 7th year thinking I would never be there again and yet here I was. Stan seemed to be thinking something along the same lines. The train came to a halt in front of us a few seconds later. Other bustling parents hurried towards their children while the Shunpike's and I stayed near a towering clock, which I assumed was where we were supposed to meet them. Then out of the crowd came a boy with Abby's hair color and Stan's famous blue eyes, he had no luggage except a small bag that hug over his shoulder. His hair was windswept and he had Stan's famous devilish grin on his face. He looked almost like Stan when I had first met him with the exception of the blonde hair. I had to look back and forth between Stan and the young man to see if it really was him. Mum ran forward pulling the boy in a hug while the rest of us hung back. Tyler came towards us and gave Abby a bone-crushing hug, which she laughed at. He turned to me with a question in his eyes. But I heard a squeal and saw Abby turn and run to a black haired vixen with blue eyes and big red lips, attached at her hand was a boy about 17 with brown hair and matching blue eyes. He wore a nervous smile and waved faintly at Tyler, Stan and me. Abby threw herself into her sister's arms and the girl smiled warmly and gave her back a small hug. I looked at Stan who after hugging Tyler looked at Maddie and smiled. Then he spotted whom she was holding hands with and the smile slipped off. It was replaced with a glare. He stayed silent as the other half of the brood walked over to us.

"Brooke, this is Maddie. Maddie this is Brooke. Her boyfriend, Nick," Mum said with a big grin. I introduced myself again and Maddie wore the same expression that Tyler had been wearing. Did I have something in my teeth? Nick turned to me.

"Hi, I'm Nick," He said sticking out his hand to me, which I shook gratefully. He was a cute kid. Stan looked at Nick as if sizing him up.

"I'm Stan, Maddie's older brother. You might have recognized me from the Daily Prophet?" He said sticking out his hand to the boy. I saw Stan clench his hand on his a little tighter than necessary.

"Come off it, Stan. I'd already pulled the whole 'My brother's an ex-death eater' on him. It didn't work. And besides you don't think I'd already measured him up?" Tyler said mischievously, patting Nick on the back. Everyone laughed.

"Tyler! Guess what!" Abby said, looking up to her brother. Tyler smiled at his sister.

"What?" Tyler said.

"Brooke taught me how to play quidditch and now we can have a match later tonight." She said smiling. Tyler's head snapped over to look at me.

"What can I say? She begged me." I said laughing and the memory. He didn't laugh but look confused. Maddie stayed silent and looked the same way towards the ground. I started to have a sick feeling in my stomach. My they really didn't like me.

"I'm sorry," Nick started. "Maddie didn't tell me that Stan had gotten married. How long have you two been together?" He scratched the back of his neck nervously. Wait, what?

"We're-" I started out but Maddie cut me off.

"You didn't tell me you were married! Congratulations!" She said throwing her arms over her brother. I stared in horror. I felt Tyler tap my back.

"Well then I should greet you properly dear sister," He said promptly pulling me into a big hug. Wait, WHAT? I struggled out of his grip while Stan did the same with his sister.

"You're married?" Mum asked shocked. Stan and I stared at her, unable to speak.

"Mum, we're not-" I started but was cut off again.

"Wow, she must really like you if your already calling her 'mum'," Maddie said smiling proudly at me. Abby looked in confusion around at everyone.

"Brooke and Stan are not married. They're not even dating." She stated to everyone. I knew I loved Abby for a reason.

"Yeah." Stan said looking over at me for conformation. I couldn't help it a giggle escaped my lips and soon I was laughing so hard that tears were streaming down my face. No one seemed to catch my humor. I suddenly felt strong arms encircle me.

"Look at what you did! You made her cry!" Stan yelled at his family. I opened my eyes and had to hold back another giggle.

"I'm laughing, you idiot." I told him gasping for breath. And then Tyler, dear dear Tyler, began to laugh too and then Nick joined in with a booming guffaw. Abby started to giggle soon joined by Maddie and Mum even cracked a smile. We attracted a few mean stares from other onlookers as we exited the barrier between the two stops. I looked over at Maddie who was frowning once the laughter had stopped.

"But seriously who are you?" She said with her brows furrowed. She looked at me and I turned to glare at Stan. Stan shrugged his shoulders and turned to his mom.

"I thought you told her about Brooke," He said in a normal tone. I gasped they didn't know anything, not that I was staying at their house or my impending relationship with their older brother. How could they not see how important this was?

"Well, I'm… I'm…" I started unsure of how to finish. Should I just come out and say I was Stan's girlfriend? Wait. No I couldn't do that because technically I wasn't Stan's lover. Well, his dad thought that so did it really matter? I shook my head mentally and looked up to see all 6 pairs of eyes staring straight at me. Stan looked the most interested. "You know what I am!" I snapped at him.

"I'm just as curious as everyone else really," He said shrugging.

"Stan and I are…" I shook my head and started over. "Stan's mother is like a mother to me. We have kissed too many times to count!" There I told them with out actually telling them. I applauded myself and my clever save. Maddie smiled. She had probably guessed what was going on all along. The apparation home was surprisingly mild. I think my nerves had something to do with the magnified sense of turning inside out on the way to King's Cross station and I easily made it back to the Shunpike's. Stan appeared a few seconds after me with Tyler in tow and Abby came with Mum. Maddie and Nick had both passed their apparation tests the year before so they arrived separately. Mum opened the door for us and shuffled to the kitchen to make dinner, I made to follow her but Tyler stopped me, a devilish grin on his face.

"Up for a quick game of quidditch? I'm a Beater on my house's quidditch team. Nick is on the Ravenclaw's team, he's captain and a Chaser. If you played seeker, Abby is the keeper, and I convinced Stan and Maddie to play we'd almost have 2 full teams," He said leaning towards me. I was surprised at how tall he was. Not as tall as Stan or Nick, but at least an inch or two taller than me. Ten minutes later I met the rest of Stan's family outside in the snow, Maddie's face was tinted with pink already and unlike mine it looked good resting on her face. Tyler came out with various fruits. Apples played the bludgers, a grapefruit for the quaffle and a kiwi for the snitch. I laughed and I enchanted the fruits to fly into the sky as I had before. I transfigured the near tears and they erupted into goals on either side. With Stan and I as seekers we started the game. Abby on one goal and Maddie on the other while Tyler and Nick played the conjoined positions of Chasers and Beaters. Mum came out sometime later to watch us, she was wrapped in a big crocheted afghan and sipped on some tea. I began getting cold very quickly, my ears were freezing and my broom screamed each time I moved in protest. I was handed this one as Tyler took the broom I had been using before. The handle of my broom was missing and it had to be at least 20 years old. I flew around slowly and looked for the brown snitch. Tyler scored with the grapefruit and Mum erupted into a fit of claps. We played for half an hour, and it was reasonably slow paced since I couldn't see the kiwi anywhere. Nick was too afraid to do anything to Tyler despite their age difference. He hit bludgers in the opposite direction and let Tyler fly by without much protest. Finally after my hands were frostbitten, and the sky turned pink with the fading sun we decided to call it a day. Neither Stan nor I could find the kiwi and we considered the game a tie. We all rushed inside to the warm house where 6 hot chocolates beckoned us. I quickly slurped down the hot chocolate and burnt my tongue in the process. Dinner probably would have been good had I been able to taste it. After dinner I offered to wash everyone's plates glad to have the warm water wash over my hands. When I returned to the living room I found Maddie and Nick squashed together on the couch though there was plenty of room. The both held books in their hands and seemed deep in thought, I think Nick was unconsciously stroking her hand. They were so cute. Stan sat with Abby at the coffee table and they were playing a game of Wizard Chess and I couldn't help but notice that Stan glanced towards Maddie and Nick every few seconds. Tyler and Mum were sitting in chairs pulled in from the kitchen and were deep in conversation. I smiled at how homey everything felt. A small fire was on in the fireplace and I knew this was what I had dreamed about since I was a child.

"Hey," I said softly to Stan as I took a spot next to Abby's. I didn't want to talk too loud and break the atmosphere.

"Hey," He whispered back staring into my eyes and I blushed and turned away.

"Why do you always stare at me like that?" I said looking at the chessboard. Stan was losing pretty badly; all he had left was his king and a bishop. I chanced a glance his way and he was still staring at me, I let my eyes fall to the board again. Abby's queen had just massacred his bishop.

"I can't help it, your eyes are so pretty..." He said trailing away and I couldn't help it but my mind traveled to what I had read from "12 Fail Safe Ways to Charm Witches". I began to giggle but Stan remained stony faced.

"I'm serious!" He said defensively. Abby put him into checkmate and the game was over. He sighed and I could tell his mind wasn't all there.

"Hey, what's the matter?" I said moving over to his and nudging his shoulder.

"It's nothing, really. I'm just thinking about things," He said vaguely. Before I had time to ask him anything else he had jumped up. Maddie and Nick were wrapped in each other's arms now, their books forgotten.

"HEY!" He yelled and I had to resist the urge to scream "HO!" He quickly placed himself in between the two teenagers making sure all body parts weren't touching.

"Hey!" Maddie said this time obviously annoyed. "We are of age you know!" She punched her brothers shoulder s little harder than necessary. What was I doing when I was 17? Oh yeah, making out with Stan and running away from home.

"Stan," I said jumping to the defense of Maddie. Nick just looked flustered and went back to reading his book. "Do you remember what YOU were doing when you were their age?" I said raising my eyebrows. His own eyebrows furrowed and the suddenly raised so high I couldn't see them behind his hair.

"You, Me, OUSTIDE! We need to talk!" Stan said gruffly to Nick. He quickly walked out the back door and Nick, who looked like he was about to have a heart attack, followed. When the door was shut everyone else burst into giggles. Abby, though, was hopefully oblivious.

"What was he doing when he was 17?" Maddie asked as I stole Nick's spot. I shrugged.

"Oh you know…" I said vaguely and smiled.

"Are you the same Brooke he used to talk about?" She said and I nodded. She pulled a face and mimicked a deep voice. " 'And then she said that one line Meg Ryan said and it was so believable! But she's so nice. I wish you guys could meet her. Oh… no, she's not my girlfriend.' But then he stopped talking about you. Seems like you got back together though." She smiled and I blushed at the mention of Sleepless in Seattle. He told his family that? The boys came back in a few minutes later. Nick, pale and shaken, took a seat across the room, steering clear and not looking Maddie in the eye. Stan came back next with a smile on his face. He sat at the coffee table and I kicked his back with the top of my shoe.

"What lies did you tell him?" I asked and he shrugged and smiled at me.

"Only the truth, darling." His grin got wider. Sometime later, Abby could take it no more, stifling yawns every few minutes she went to bed. That left the older kids up. Mum went up to bed next and it was unreasonably quiet. Maddie and Nick, still on opposite side of the room, continued to read their books while Tyler talked to me about all his friends and about Professor McGonagall's impending retirement. He talked so much I could barely get a word in edgewise. Unlike he siblings, Maddie seemed content not to say another word the rest of the night and same as Nick. Stan was obviously bored but didn't want to admit defeat and head to bed so he played a game of gobstones by himself.

"When are you going home?" Maddie asked suddenly putting her bookmark into her book. "I don't mean to be rude but I want to go to sleep and I don't want to be rude and leave with out seeing you out." My mouth opened wide (Hey, maybe I was a part of the family now?) and Stan seemed unfazed. He continued to sulk and didn't even look up when he answered.

"She lives here. We sleep together." He said and flicked one of the gobstones. Oh great.

"You sleep together?" Maddie said sounding like a fish out of water.

"Yeah, every night. How long has it been? A month, a month and a half?" He said again. Maddie made gasping sounds and Tyler just looked impressed. Nick decided he didn't want to be a part of the conversation and sank deeper into his book, his ears a light pink.

"I always knew you'd get some." Tyler said patting his brother on the back. I sighed.

"No, we sleep in the same room." I said exasperatedly. Stan still said nothing. Maddie's expression slackened and she headed down the hall and turned to the right where I guessed her bedroom was. "C'mon, Stan. Let's go to bed, you have to get up early." I pulled him and he put down the stones and followed me out. I could hear Tyler laughing with each step I took. I quickly changed into my pajamas and found Stan lying on my bed with a book in his hands. I cleared my throat but still he didn't move.

"How am I supposed to get to bed if you're lying on it?" I asked throwing my arms up in mock exasperation and sat on the side of the bed. I threw my legs over his so we were sitting parallel to each other. He put the book down on the side of the bed, letting it slip from his fingers. I heard it settle with a muffled clunk on the floor.

"We could give my little sister something to gossip about and sleep in each others arms," He said looking into my eyes again. My heart beat fast even though I knew he was joking.

"Fine!" I said slumping down next to him. Ha! Now he would get flustered and retreat! Stan got up and I grinned at my victory. I closed my eyes until I felt him move next to me once again. What? My eyes flew open and there was Stan, his neck was at my eye level.

"Tricked you! I was just grabbing an extra blanket." He said but his voice didn't sound like he was joking at all. He threw the blanket over us. I didn't say anything because my throat was so dry. When I finally got my mouth to move again he had already put his arm around me, drawing me in closer so our skin was touching. I was shell-shocked and couldn't move, not that I would have wanted to if I could. He smelled so good and it was cold out and he was so warm and it just felt so… right.

I woke up the next morning with the sun in my eyes. Stan was gone for work already and I wondered if everything that happened last night was real or just a dream. I got up and walked over to the closet door to change. I picked out my clothes and when I closed the door, a piece of yellow paper caught my eyes. A sticky note hung from the closet door.

_I wondered if it was a dream too, it's not._


	10. Christmas Part 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter- JK Rowling does.

A/N: Thanks for my first review. Sorry this chapter is so short.

I couldn't look at Stan the next day as bedtime approached. We were reasonably normal with each other; his family was all so talkative, always wanting to trade stories. I headed up to bed early, before anyone else. That way I could pretend to be asleep if Stan slipped in beside me again or when he slipped into the couch he slept on I would be able to get over myself. I cleaned up that night after dinner, hurrying through and using magic.

"Well, I'm going to bed!" I said to everyone in the living room. I caught a glance at the clock; it was only 7:30. I looked at everyone but Stan.

"Ok, I'll go to sleep too." I heard him say, "G'night everyone. Don't disturb us!" Stan said smiling and standing up near me. I heard Mum cluck her tongue and Maddie give a faint 'oooooo' while Tyler laughed. I could barely acknowledge anyone. How was I supposed to go threw with my plan if Stan was there? I climbed the stairs numbly as Stan followed close behind and changed my pajamas in the bathroom still in a daze. I brushed my teeth wondering if I would find Stan asleep on the couch already when I got there or if I would find him on my bed again. I opened the bathroom room door and I turned towards my bed. Stan was sitting there looking at the ground. YES! My inner voice screamed. No one even retaliated this time.

"I didn't know if it was a routine thing now… or…" He trailed off and looked at me hopefully.

"Well, I guess. It is rather warm when you sleep next to me," I said trying to shrug it off but I could hear the excitement rising in my own voice. I crept over to him and he pushed over so his back was to the wall. His arms wrapped around me almost instinctively and I snuggled a little closer to his chest unintentionally. "I like it when you wear my shirt to bed," He said. The words were muffled as he spoke into my hair. I nodded.

"I like wearing your shirt to bed. It's very comfortable." I said and it was my voice that was muffled this time as I spoke directly into his chest.

"Goodnight Brooke," He whispered and kissed the top of my head. My body involuntary shuddered.

"Sweet dreams," I said to him and closed my eyes.

I stayed awake for a long time and I'm sure Stan did too. I didn't end up feeling tired until 9 and even then I was too wired to be in Stan's arms to do much. When I heard Stan's breathing slow I began to whisper things to him. Maybe I could control him if I whispered to him while he was sleeping. I giggled at my own foolish ideas.

"I want to wake up in your arms tomorrow. Don't go to work until later." I whispered into his chest and giggled again. "I like when you hold me like this though I'll never admit it." I kissed his collarbone and before I knew it I had drifted off to sleep. I woke up the next day afraid to open my eyes. Stan wasn't going to be here and I would be lonely but a part of me wanted to believe he was still laying next to me. I sighed and rolled over against the wall. My eyes flew open. Stan was still there; his arms were wrapped around my waist, taking in deep breaths. Now way! Had my hypnotism worked? What if he just was late to work? I sighed to myself for getting my hopes up. Aw well… I thought as I pressed my face deeper into Stan's chest.

"Well good morning to you too." A voice said suddenly. I flew away from the source and fell on the floor with a thud. I let out a cry of pain. Stan sat up and smiled at me as I blushed a deep red.

"I didn't know you were awake," I said panicking. I stood up quickly trying to ignore the bruise that was most likely forming on my butt.

"I noticed." He chuckled again. He slid off the bed and headed to the closet to pick out the clothes.

"Why aren't you at work?" I said. I had drifted over to where he stood and crossed my arms. I wanted him to hold me again. I wanted to go back to sleep and relive the night before.

"I'm taking the late shift today. I just had this feeling last night that somebody wanted to… what was it? 'Wake up in my arms' today." He smiled and my blush deepened.

"Jerk!" I yelled in mock anger. I couldn't help but feel my grin slip and my façade was broken quickly. "Do you always pretend to be asleep to spy on me?" I asked him when he had stopped laughing. Stan paused and put a finger on his chin as if in deep thought.

"Yeah pretty much," He answered and went back to picking out clothes. I slapped his shoulder playfully.

Time past quickly, in between Christmas preparations and falling asleep in Stan's arms my mind was always busy. Tyler wanted to play qudditch every second of everyday. Abby wanted me to help her make snowmen. Though Maddie and Nick seemed quite happy snogging in dark corners of the house, the rest of us were content pretending we didn't hear the moans and sighs. Mum was baking enough to feed Dumbledore's Army. In fact I think the only thing she had baked was sweets, I didn't see a turkey or ham anywhere. It was supposedly a quiet Christmas, just the people already at the house celebrating as well as Mum's brother and his wife and kids. I was getting Christmas fever. I so wanted time to quicken and for the 25th to be here and I wanted to see everyone's faces when I handed them their presents but then again I wanted time to stop so I could capture each moment. I wanted to capture Abby's red face and blonde hair covered in snow. I wanted to capture the look on Stan's face when he found Maddie and Nick in the pantry. I wanted to capture Mum's serious look as she unrolled a roll of dough as Tyler stood by and tried to inconspicuously eat some of the cookie dough. So that's how I became official picture taker for the holidays. Stan gave me his old camera and each time I would see something I thought was memorable I would take a picture of it. Then later hang it on the wall by my bed. I had about 20 or so pictures covering the side of the bed where Stan slept when Christmas Eve arrived. Everyone was so merry. Nick, Stan and Tyler returned around noon levitating a huge Christmas tree and we manually put on the ornaments and hang the tinsels on any solid object, including a very annoyed Abby. Mum even let us have some of her cookies, which we all accepted graciously.

"Brooke! C'mon!" Abby said calling me towards the backyard where her snowmen lay. They were in a circle, each with a stolen article of clothing from the person they were modeled after. Mum's had a red hat I'd seen her wear on occasion. Maddie's had a Ravenclaw scarf wrapped around its head; Tyler's had a Slytherin one. Nick had another hat and Stan's had two identical gloves. They were tall, almost as tall as Abby. I could see the work she put into each of them, giving them personalities. Stan with his devilish grin, Maddie with big red lips fashioned from an apple. I suddenly felt like crying when I saw mine. I was next to Stan where my scarf was wrapped around the neck and tied twice. I could see the small pebbles on my doppelganger's face to represent my freckles. The tears poured down my face as I took the picture, my hand wobbled so much on each one that the snow people looked as if they were jumping up and down. Abby came over to me afterward when I had taken the last picture and wiped my tears away with unspoken words of sympathy.

"They'll freeze on your face you know," Abby said simply. I gave her a shaky smile and embraced her into a large hug, which she graciously accepted.

"Love you," Abby said and the tears came harder. I had to take in shuddering breaths to stop myself.

"Love you too," I told her and we walked back into the house where our hot chocolates awaited us.

Christmas eve evening was uneventful. Since the stove was occupied we ate peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for supper. We all went to sleep earlier so "Santa" could come and deliver presents. I don't think I've ever seen Abby so excited to go to bed. I went up to the room with Stan trailing after me.

"We're not actually going to sleep?" I asked him checking my watch. It was only 8.

"Not unless you want to. I thought I'd give you my present now. So hurry and put on your pj's" He said and laughed. I did as he ordered and returned to the room in 5 minutes from the bathroom where I had nearly poked my eye out with the toothbrush from rushing. I sprinted to the room eager to see my present. Stan was sitting on our bed. No longer was it 'my' bed or 'his' bed, only ours. The couch he used to sleep on now held finished books and some laundry. I took a running and leapt towards him, we both fell backwards on the bed. My forehead clanked against his as our bodies collided. Immediate pain surged to the middle of my head. We untangled ourselves and I rubbed my hurt forehead.

"Not my best idea." I muttered as I looked to the mirror where both Stan and I had twin red marks on our forehead. Stan laughed seemingly unfazed by this.

"It was cute." He said earnestly. _You're cute,_ I thought before I could stop myself. We settled into silence at the unsaid words.

"Let me get your present." I said as I climbed down from the bed and laid flat down on the wood floor to retrieve the present at the back. I came back up and noticed for the first time the small package that lay on the bed next to Stan. I felt excitement rise up in me. It was going to be the best present ever; I just knew it. "Ready?" I asked him. He nodded and slipped me the package. He motioned for me to open it.

"No way, I want to see your reaction first." I said excitedly though I felt as if the package in my hands was on fire. Stan looked at my delicate wrapping and undid the bow carefully. He ripped open the packaging and I was glad he did that. I hated people who opened the wrapping carefully. His expression of excitement changed immediately to one of complete and utter joy. I couldn't help but pat myself on my back. He looked at its flat brown cover.

"It's beautiful, Brooke. I can't wait to write in it," He turned it over in his hands and examined the papers inside. "I just can't help thinking that ten years from now our kids will read it and know what I was thinking right now," He suddenly stilled as his words sank in. I blushed and he turned even redder. "I would take it back but I would be lying if I said I hadn't thought of the possibility." We stared at each other for a few moments both of us too embarrassed to say anything. My embarrassment quickly turned to elation. I turned over his package in my hands. Hand wrapped with a horrible tape job and a small bow identical to mine. I quickly dug into it and was surprised by what I had in my hand.

"It's… what is it?" I asked him and I couldn't hide my disappointment. In my hand lay a box, which was painted white, it was peeling but at least it was shiny. A key stuck out from the side. Stan however seemed like he was expecting this reaction.

"A jewelry box, but it's what's inside that counts," He smiled big and I opened the top of the lid and peered inside. And there it was the present I was waiting for. Inside the jewelry box laid a small silver chain and at the end was a butterfly with what seemed to be opal in the middle but suddenly the stone in the middle switched to a light pink.

"It changes with the owners mood." Stan said and his eyes showed even excitement. I was speechless so all I could do was throw my arms over Stan's neck. He jumped a little but then smoothed my hair as I felt tears prick in the corner of my eyes. Finally I pulled away but all I wanted to do was go right back into his arms.

"I love it. I really do. I'll wear it everyday until I die." I told him truthfully. I handed him the necklace and motioned for him to put in on for me. I pulled my hair away from my neck and I felt Stan put the closing the clasp on the necklace. I was about to move away again as I felt Stan press his lips to the nape of my neck. My skin rose up in goose bumps and my mind went blank for a few seconds. Stan was hovering over the back of my neck; I could feel his breath on my neck. I set the jewelry box on the side table surprised by my sudden movement.

"It was my grandmother's you know," Stan said simply as he slid into the covers and I followed suite.

"Yeah?" I said dreamily.

"Yeah, my grandpa gave it to her as an engagement present. It was really sweet you know?' He said again and pulled me closer. I nodded again in a daze. Just when Stan's breathing started to slow I realized the meaning of his words. I gasped and nudged his shoulder. Stan awoke with a grunt and looked over at me confused.

"Morning already?" He asked and rubbed his eyes. I just stared.

"I can't take this," I said reaching up to take off the necklace. I pawed at my hair trying to get it out of the way. Stan looked at me for a few moments and then placed his hands on mine and slowly lowered it down until out intertwined fingers lay in a jumbled mess in my lap.

"Why, Brooke?" He asked me in a whisper. I just shook my head. I couldn't take something so precious. This was probably the last thing Mum had of her own mother and I could never take that away.

"You shouldn't give it to me. You shouldn't really," I said instead and then as if an epiphany I knew the real reason that I couldn't keep the necklace, they mirrored his feelings for me. It hit right afterward like a ton of bricks. I loved Stan.

"Why not Brooke?" He asked me. I felt his hands tighten against mine and then he moved slowly closer to me. I felt myself being pulled into his arms. I wanted to pull away but at the same time I pushed myself against his chest.

"You shouldn't give it to me." I started again. "You should give it to the girl you l-l-love." I whispered, my voice cracking into a sob at the last word. Stan didn't say anything for a long while but instead pulled me closer. My tears cleared almost immediately.

"Maybe someday," He said as if this solved all our problems. He shook his head and pulled away from me. My arms felt his absence but I resisted the urge to move closer to him again. He tilted my chin up and looked into my eyes. I hated when he did that. "Listen Brooke…" He started but trailed off remaining silent. I could only hear our heartbeats accelerating. "Listen," He ran his hands through his hair. "I really really like you." He paused and stared at the comforter. "I want to be serious. I want you and me to be together. Will you be my-" But before he could answer me I had thrown my arms over his next and kissed his lips hungrily. I had missed that. Our kiss didn't hold the usual greed that it held when we were teenagers instead it only murmured words of promises. I slowly backed away taking a big gulp of air and then before Stan could say anything I had crushed my lips to his again. His hands rested around my waist and I took the liberty of running my hands through his hair. Suddenly he pulled away. "No, you don't understand Brooke. I want it to be different than last time. I want to date you, not shove my tongue down your throat whenever someone's not looking and to do that I need you to answer me. I need you to tell me." I stared at him for a while, fiddling with the necklace that I had no intention on taking off every again. Why was he talking so much? I just wanted to jump his bones and snog until the morning light. I stayed silent. Maybe he was waiting for me to say something. I looked up and saw his staring at me expectantly. My throat was suddenly dry when I realized what I needed to say. I felt suddenly felt euphoric. How could one girl be so lucky?

"Yes. I'll be your girlfriend." My smile was radiant and I leaned in to kiss him once again.


	11. Christmas Part 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter- JK Rowling does (AKA: Not me)

A/N: Originally the Christmas chapters were only going to be a Christmas chapter but fate apparently had different plans. Please review and tell me what you think, I love constructive criticism. Thanks for reading this far!

I woke up the next day and I couldn't remember what had happened in my dreams although I did remember having them, I was certain of that. I tried and tried as I stroked Stan's hair to remember what I had dreamt about. I couldn't help but feel a sense of nostalgia and then I'd sense warmth. I remembered what had happened the night before with a start as I woke up. I checked the necklace around my neck just to make sure I hadn't imagined it like I had so many times before. Stan stirred beside me but before he could even realize where he was I kissed him. Not on the lips as I had the night before but a quick peck on the cheek and his face although groggy, seemed to show recognition.

"Hi girlfriend," He said and kissed my cheek this time. He sat up slowly. "Merry Christmas." We got dressed quickly and I was even more conscious when Stan went to the bathroom to change. We were the first people up and we moved to the living room where presents were piled under the tree, some bulging out towards the fireplace. Stan sat down on the infamous loveseat and I sat on his lap with no remorse. I had just gotten him back, I had to resist myself from touching him every second. Stan wrapped his arms around my waist and I laid my head on his shoulder and he did the same with mine. We watched in silence the snow outside. Abby's snowmen stood in the middle of the backyard looking happy with the prospect of another cold day. And then I heard it.

I tried to ignore it, I really did. Stan acted unfazed and I wondered if he heard it at all and then suddenly it was there again, louder.

"AH!" The voice said a third time. I blushed red. Oh Maddie, please don't. I really don't want to know if you're a screamer, I begged her silently. Stan sat suddenly rigid. His slight rocking stopped and he sat with his head cocked. From the room down the hall to the right another sound came. This one came from a male and sounded more like a gasp. I looked to my watch; it was only 6 in the morning. Stan made a movement to try and get up from under me. I tried to stop him but I was already thrown into the seat beside Stan's and he took off towards his little sister's room stomping his feet and glowing a beet red.

"…Never liked him… she's only 17…" He continued to mumble as I followed him down the hall, partly out of curiosity and partly to help Maddie. Stan angrily threw open the door and I closed my eyes. Oh goodness. It was silent for a few seconds.

"What the HELL?" Stan roared and I chanced a glance into the room. There in the middle of the sea foam green room was Nick looking sheepish and Maddie who had suddenly sprouted her brother's trademark grin, both fully dressed. In between them was a robotic dog. I grimaced at the thought of the sexual games they had been playing.

"Did we wake you up?" Maddie said innocently enough. She didn't even have the decency to blush.

"No." I answered quickly and tried to pull Stan out of the doorway. He just glared at Nick.

"Answer my question," He commanded to Nick, not even acknowledging Maddie. Nick however, unlike his girlfriend, blushed a deep red.

"I'm sorry. I wanted to give her the present before we went and opened everything else," Nick stuttered and looked at Stan's knee instead which was about even with him since he was sitting Indian style on the floor.

"So you just thought you'd get a little afternoon delight before then, huh?" Stan sneered and I couldn't help but giggle at his choice of words. I faked a cough to cover though. I thought it was quite convincing. Stan however seemed unfazed.

"What are you talking about?" Maddie said blushing now.

"I heard the sounds. Don't think you can lie to me. I'm just glad Mum didn't find you," Stan said shaking his head. Nick suddenly jumped up when he realized what Stan was referring to.

"NO! No, no no no no! I bought Maddie a robotic dog for her Christmas present. She's always saying she wants a dog but you know you can't have one at Hogwarts, too many cats. I bought her a muggle one because I'd know she would appreciate it. She is always very keen on muggle things." Nick was talking at an alarming fast pace. I don't think he took a breath through all of it. He was pacing back and forth and Maddie just blushed a red to match her lips. "So I thought why not give her the present before everyone else and that why she'll be able to thank me and I won't be embarrassed. So we get the dog out of the package and it says you have to call loudly to it if you want it to come and we tried shouting and everything but Maddie's the only one who could get it to work and so that's probably what you heard. We didn't do anything!" He threw his hands up in a defensive manner. Maddie spoke up this time.

"We're waiting, you know." Maddie said blushing again. I wished I had been like her. Stan was the one looking flustered and I saw his ears turn pink.

"Oh… well then, I guess you can carry on," He said and shut the door. He turned to me and I could have laughed at how red his face was.

"Anyone would have thought that," I said rubbing his shoulder. We walked back to the living room. Abby had stumbled in a few minutes later still adorned in pajamas and a bad case of behead. Tyler came next and was almost dressed the same. Mum came after them and we gathered everyone. Only then we were allowed to open our presents. Our presents quickly separated into different piles. They were all wrapped in the same wrapping paper, a white background with moving penguins. I smiled at the thought of Mum working all night on them to wrap them for us. I took pictures of every present opening. My pile suddenly grew larger and larger when Stan began sorting again. I was surprised when I even got more than one present. I had really only been expecting something from Stan. I touched my neck again just to make sure the necklace was still there. When everyone had finished opening his or her presents I looked down at mine.

"Open mine first," Maddie said excitedly after she had opened the scarf her elder brother had given her. I nodded and opened the package from her. Inside was a small silver bracelet, obviously new with my name on it. "I found it in the junk shop and I was like I have to get this!" She said.

"It's from me too." Nick piped in; obviously flustered he hadn't got me anything. Poor kid. I gave her and Nick a quick hug and slipped on the bracelet. Next was Tyler's. I looked down to find 2 chocolate frogs. I laughed and picked them up. Stan would be happy to finish off my chocolate. The 15-year-old flushed when I stood up and gave him a big hug. I loved this family. I opened a card hand made by Abby. The writing was jumbled and some of the words were misspelled but the feeling was there.

Deer Broke,

Roses r red

Violets r blu

Stan loves you

And I do too.

I giggled nervously and pulled her into the biggest bear hug I could manage. She laughed and squeezed me back. I loved her. Mum had hand knitted a scarf for me with my first initial. "We know the second initial is changing soon," She whispered to me later. It was blue and the fleece felt weightless on my fingers but when I wrapped it around my neck I was instantly warm.

"Thanks, Mum." I said and I suddenly got nervous. If Stan and I were dating could I still call her Mum? Stan however didn't get my discomfort and stood up jerkily. He walked over to where I was standing trying to open my new chocolate frog and took my hand. Before I knew what he was doing he spoke up.

"Brooke and I have an announcement," Stan said a little louder than needed, his family had already fallen silent when they saw him take my hand.

"My baby's getting married!" Mum said excitedly running over to me her arms wide.

"No!" Stan said in a harsh tone. "Why does everyone assume that?" He asked turning to me as if I would be able to make sense of it. I shrugged at him. Mum took her place again and Stan continued. "Brooke and I," He used his fingers motioning to him and me like he was talking to a three year old. "Brooke and I are dating," He said.

"I thought you already were," Maddie said in a bored tone. I sighed, who didn't? Abby was the only one who looked excited.

"… And then we can paint each others fingernails. I've never done that. And in the summer we'll be able to go swimming." She said as I walked over to her. I didn't have the heart to tell her we could have done those things anyway. I caught Stan's eye and grinned. He got a silly looking smile and I wondered if I looked like that. Everyone got changed quickly and the family did a last minute clean up, throwing wrapping paper in the trash, dusting the blinds just one more time. I was sucked into the kitchen with Mum and happily started on the green bean casserole.

"So…" Mum said as she got out the cranberry sauce she had made the night before. "You and Stan are dating." She stated and I couldn't help but smile and nod. "But your sleeping in the same room," She said and I could see she was mentally clucking her tongue. Oops, I forgot about that.

"It's not like we do anything. In fact I don't think we will anytime soon. So you don't have to worry about it," I said nonchalantly but I couldn't help wondering what if would feel like to have Stan's naked body pressed against mine-

"… Brooke!" Mum yelled and I realized I had been drooling a little in the middle of my daydream.

"What?" I said, angry that she'd interrupted me for such a good visual.

"Your casserole!" She screamed and I looked to the timer to see it had completely stopped. How long had I been dozing off? I quickly took the casserole out of the oven and to my delight it wasn't all that burnt.

The Turner's, Mum's brother's family, came at one bearing a big turkey and a young boy around Abby's age carried a vat of gravy. Mr. Turner reminded me of a lumberjack, a big black beard and a head full of hair. He even wore a red plaid shirt. At his side was a meek looking lady, Mrs. Turner, who had white blonde hair and a kind smile. They had 3 children, or at least 3 that came with them. Molly was 17 and oldest, she immediately went off with Maddie and Nick after I'd been introduced. David was 13, just in between Abby and Tyler and went to play a portable videogame in the corner. The youngest was Joseph, or Joe at only 8. He seemed small for his age. Although he was taller than Abby he was as skinny as a stick, I could see the joints in his arm. He went off with Abby and they disappeared into her room.

"They don't look much like you," I commented to Mr. Turner. He let out a loud guffaw that scared me to the point of almost peeing my pants.

"They're all adopted so I don't think they look much like me either. Though they're ours, Sally's and mine and I love 'em down to their very last pinkie toe," He said in a booming voice. And thus began my friendship with Mr. Turner or as he preferred to be called Al.

We talked a lot over Christmas day. We talked until dinner (Mum's hard work paid off) and then until 8 in the evening when Al's youngest, Joe fell asleep on the couch. Al obviously favored Stan. Of course he talked about his other nieces and nephews but never the way he talked about Stan.

"Stan is always so noble. I tell my kids, 'Look up to Stan, be like Stan when you grow up.' I love 'em." Al said and ruffled Stan's hair. It seemed odd that Stan was the one having his hair ruffled. He always seemed like the ruffling type to me. That was what Al said always. "I love 'em," leaving of the first two letters, it could have meant 'him' 'her' or even 'them,' no one was ever sure. Al and I conversed about everything- the family, politics (we both favored Kingsley Shacklebot), and even our favorite authors. We discussed the weather, Mr. Shunpike and even Al's own love story. It was quite cute, involving disapproving parents, a love song and a single rose. I think the thing I liked most about Al was that he liked everyone. Even when we talked about people we didn't approve of, Al was still polite. We talked a lot but instead of it being like with Tyler where I couldn't get a word in, we would alternate. His stories and then mine.

"You marry this woman, you hear? If you don't I will," Al told Stan as we walked them to the door. I laughed and hugged Sally and Al, and waved goodbye to the children whom I had only seen at the dinner table. Once the door closed and my smile slowly faded. Now what? I was about to head upstairs to bed when I felt to arms encircle me and toss me around in a circle. I heard Stan laugh gleefully as he put me down again.

"They loved you!" He said amazed. "I was so afraid that you and Al wouldn't get along. You're both so opinionated but it just worked!" He snapped his hands and laughed again. I couldn't help but laugh along.

"Want to go upstairs and snog until we both pass out tired?" I suggested he shrugged his shoulder and looked over to his family who were spread out around the kitchen.

"Trust me they won't miss you. Race you!" I yelled and sprinted up the stairs I burst open the door to our room. Stan caught up to me eventually and then slipped a kiss on my cheek. I don't remember much from that night; my brain had been so fried, but the next morning I woke up with a smile on my swollen lips and a hoarse voice.

The train station as we entered seemed strangely eerie as we entered again. Instead of the nerves I had felt the last time I felt instead regret from spending the last week snogging Stan instead of spending it with my family. No longer did I feel embarrassed by saying this, it was a fact. I knew it; they were my family. Of course I had spent time playing quidditch with Tyler (we could never find that kiwi) and I did speak quite a lot with Maddie who seemed to know more muggle movies than I did. Abby moped all morning and crossed the barrier to 9 ¾ in tears. I hugged her and led her towards her other siblings. We watched as the train came into the station. I took Maddie in my arms and hugged her tight.

"Come back safe, write often," I told her and caught a glimpse of Nick watching us. "Tell your boyfriend that Stan likes him even though he won't admit it." I heard Maddie let out a sniff. She pulled back from me and hugged her older brother before boarding the train. I hugged Nick awkwardly and when it was over he looked even more flustered. He kept checking behind his shoulder as if someone was watching him. Cute kid. Tyler came last and I found him the hardest. He had played qudditch with me almost everyday and I loved the kid. He had already used his extendable ear twice, and those two times I had caught him listening into a conversation between Mum and I. He talked so much about everything I felt like I already knew his friends (Pete, a fellow quidditch player and Bryan, a playboy but top of the class). I hugged him tight and he hugged me back.

"I'll miss you. Make sure you write." I told him, pretending to be stern. I hugged him again but this time he quickly pulled away as someone called his name. Pete, I could tell by the glasses and broken nose, stole Tyler away and they headed on to the train. We, Stan, Abby, Mum and I, stayed until the train pulled out of the station; only then did I feel tears. They weren't the kind of tears you shed at funerals, no, this kind was silent and I hardly noticed they were there. Stan however did. He drew me into a big hug and wiped the tears of my cheeks with his index finger.

"I love them," I said. Saying it out loud for the first time was much different for thinking it. I felt a rush of emotion. I loved them, I loved them, I loved them, and I loved _him_. Before I could help myself I had crushed my lips against Stan's. He was kissing back and hard. My arms reached up and pulled his head closer. A cough from behind startled us both. Mum stood there looking embarrassed with Abby who seemed unfazed.

"We're ready to go home as soon as you are." Mum said looking at the ground. I unraveled my hands from Stan's hair and instead encased his hand in my own. I laid my head down on his shoulder, heaved a sigh and left platform 9 ¾.


	12. Disaster Date

Disclaimer: I don't own HP- JK Rowling does.

A/N: Sorry this chapter is kind of short. Only 9 chapter left!

Three days after Maddie, Nick and Tyler left I returned to Bill's Steaks. I worked the late shirt starting from 5 and ending at 12 when they closed. I woke up and started the day with Stan gone. That damn Knight Bus. I took a slow shower and I took even more time getting dressed. Just as I finished putting a last swipe of mascara on Mum called me down for lunch. It seemed I wasn't the only sulky one though. Abby pushed at her salad with her fork, only eating the croutons.

"I don't understand why you have to go back to work. I want to play all day." She said. I nodded, so did I. Stan, already home, didn't even look at me. He pushed his food around on his plate but still ended up eating a third helping of everything.

"I'm changing my shift on the bus. Instead of the morning I'll work the same time as you so we'll be able to spend more time together," He said suddenly to me as he put down his fork. I looked up. God, I loved him. I put my hand on his arm and looked into his eyes, with a look that I hoped to convey this without words. We stared at each other silently. I could feel Mum's and Abby's gazes but decided to ignore them. Suddenly he grabbed my arm and pulled me up. "5 minutes, Mum," He shouted as he ran up the stairs to our room, pulling me behind. By the time the door was closed and I had caught my breath Stan's lips were mine.

We arrived downstairs 20 minutes later, out of breath with matching swollen lips. Our dishes had already been cleaned and Mum was in the kitchen shaking her head. If she wanted to express her doubts, she didn't say anything. Abby was trying unsuccessfully to play a game of gobstones by herself. She was covered in a purple liquid and I said a cleaning spell to wipe her clean. She thanked me and went back to playing.

"I've still got time, Abby. I'll toss you some apples and you can save them outside." I told her and went to retrieve my coat and boots. Abby dressed in hers stood at the door with our brooms in her hand. We opened the door and a biting chill hit our faces. Why was it so cold? Of course it had been below freezing since before Christmas but not like this. We were outside for five minutes and then came hurrying inside. I was surprised how fast Mum had made the hot chocolate this time. Each time we would come inside from the cold a hot chocolate always seemed to be waiting for us. I asked her about this.

"Oh no, dear. It's not me. Creech, our house elf, always make the hot chocolate." She said as if this was obvious.

"House elf?" I said mollified making sure I heard her right. I hadn't seen a house elf around here and I'd been living there for almost 2 months.

"Yes. Usually you don't see him. I haven't told you about my business have I?" She asked me and I shook my head. "I sell books, muggle books, to witches and wizard who don't want to go muggle shops. I give them recommendations. It doesn't have a big revenue, but I still have a few good loyal customers." And suddenly it hit me. All of the muggle books on the kitchen table when I'd first arrived, Maddie knowing about all of the movies and all of the books in Stan's bookshelf. "Creech delivers them for me. But I don't know what it is when ever he hears the back door opens, he comes home and makes hot chocolate." She sat down her tea and looked at Abby and me, our hot chocolates almost gone, some lonely marshmallows floating at the top. "I pay him though. I follow the new laws and everything." She was referring to the new Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare laws requiring a person to now pay there elves a minimum of 1 sickle a month. I tried looking for Creech that day but I had no luck. He must be hiding from me.

I arrived at the newly renovated Bill's steaks dressed in my uniform (a white shirt with black robes) at 4:30. Personally I couldn't see the difference despite a few different light fixtures in the "newly renovated" bistro. It still looked like the hosh posh place I worked at. Only the rich came here, usually ending up drunk and out a few hundred dollars on two meals. It was slow that night, because it was Wednesday. Or at least that's what one of my co-workers said.

"It's slow because it's Monday," She had said the last evening I had been there. Time went slow when I only had one table at a time. Refilling iced tea glasses was only so entertaining. And then at last it was midnight and I ushered a drunken couple out of the restaurant and closed up. I couldn't wait to go home and sleep in Stan's arm and then when I woke up he would still be there, stroking my cheek and holding my body. I could barely contain my excitement as I reached the outside of the house. I walked up the familiar porch and to the door I had my hand poised over the knocker when suddenly I realized in the chilly night that it was midnight. Abby, Mum and probably Stan were all asleep now. I didn't have a key. I quickly disapparated to Stan's bedroom. I tried my hardest to land by the couch and not disturb him. I opened my eyes when I felt my feet touch solid ground. I was standing on the bed, correction: I was standing on Stan.

"Um, hey." He said looking up to me. I quickly sat down and rolled off of him.

"I don't have a key," I explained.

"Aim for the couch next time," He said getting up and rubbing his back. "How was work?"

"Good," I lied and lay down on the bed. I patted the space next to me and Stan followed my unsaid orders and took the place next to me. His arms wrapped around me and I was so glad to able to smell that kick of cinnamon again.

"Want to go out for lunch tomorrow?" He said pulling me closer. I shifted so we were in our usual position. My head was laid out his arm, Stan's nose close to the crevice of my neck.

"Yes," I said breathlessly as he kissed my temple and squeezed me tighter still.

I woke up early the next day. Stan was already rummaging through the closet with a serious look on his face. He picked out a blue t-shirt I loved him and jeans. He looked over at me to make sure I was still sleeping and I quickly closed my eyes. I heard him rummaging and opened my eyes a slit again. He was wearing light blue boxers. His scarred chest flexed as he bent down to pick up his jeans. I let out an audible sigh. Why did he have to be so enticing? Stan's head cocked up when my sound reached his ears and our eyes met. I tried to hurriedly close them again and feign sleeping but it was no hope. I opened my eyes again to see that he got that devilish grin on his face.

"Baby, if you wanted some you should have come downtown last night," Stan said mischievously. He threw his arms up and moved his now clothed hips in a dance move. I giggled and Stan laughed. "I'm thinking we should get going in a little bit. It's only 10 but I was thinking we could disappear before Abby and Mum realize what's going down," He said. I nodded and picked out a long sleeve shirt and knee length khaki skirt. We were both ready by 10:30 and by some miracle my hair had dried in an almost cute manner leaving me time to spare.

"Date," Stan said simply to his mom and took my hand. When we disapparated I could still here Mum's "Have fun." We arrived not in Diagon Alley but instead at a muggle establishment. In front of us was a familiar restaurant.

"McDonald's?" I asked him curiously. Stan grinned.

"I hear it's really high class in the muggle world," He said and held open the door for me. I could barely stifle a laugh as his face fell when he saw the playground and then the dirty tables. "Muggles have really low standards," He said with his brow furrowed. I laughed at him as he paid for our burgers and fries.

"You carry around muggle money?" I asked him as I bit down into my fry.

"Of course. I don't know when you'll want to do an impromptu date." He grinned as he bit into his own burger. I couldn't help but blush thinking about the fact that today was our first official date as a couple. Of course we had been dating since Christmas but we hadn't done anything together. Unless you counted snogging as 'doing something', which truthfully, I always did.

"So tell me Brooke. What made you fall for me? Let's be truthful now," Stan said in such a weird voice I couldn't help but laugh.

"The money, definitely. I've always wanted a rich man," I said laughing. He grinned.

"I had my suspicions from the start." He laughed but then stopped suddenly. "But come on Brooke, tell me. I really am curious." His smile faded a little yet it still seemed to hold the same radiance.

"I don't know. I guess that your really nice and you always make me smile. You're a really good kissed too, so that's a plus," I said truthfully. I looked down at my burger and surprised to see it was half gone, the date already halfway finished.

"I'll accept that. Although I will admit that all my other girlfriend's have told I was an extremely good kisser," He said and I laughed. What girlfriends?

"Your imaginary girlfriends?" I asked him teasingly and he smiled.

"I've had my share," He said. And then suddenly remembered he had dodged this question the last time I'd asked.

"No seriously. Tell me about your other girlfriends," I said seriously. What if it was someone I knew?  
"Well, before… you know," He started. "I was in wrecks because of you for a year. No lie, I couldn't even look at another girl without thinking about you. Then along came Tina. Tina was nice we dated for 6 months before I figured out she wasn't the one, you know?" He asked but I could respond he was continuing. "She didn't laugh at my jokes. She didn't like kids. Then there was Amy for 4 months but that was mostly physical. That's all. I haven't seen anyone else for 5 years." He shrugged and sipped his drink. I stayed silent.

"I laugh at your jokes," I said suddenly and then blushed. He just stared at a spot to left of my shoulder in embarrassment. No, wait, he was looking at someone. I turned around and followed his gaze. There was Hunter, wrapped around the arms of a busty redhead. His secretary, no doubt. Disgusting.

"Merlin," Stan said, "Speak of the Devil," Hunter broke away and looked up to find the two of us staring at him. The redhead looked confused as Hunter took her hand and walked over to our table. I turned back to Stan and began to busily eat my French fries.

"Stan?" The redhead said. I just stared at her. They knew each other? Hunter's eyes were on mine, apparently not interested in his slut's conversations.

"I had to order a new remote you know." He said angrily.

"Hunter, maybe if-" I started but was cut off by Stan.

"Hunter?" He yelled jumping up and his eyes traveled from the redhead to Hunter and back to the redhead. "Amy?" I could have laughed at the situation when it sank in, but didn't. Our exes were together, Stan's and mine. We could qualify for Jerry Springer. I had just let out a giggle when I sat in horror as I saw Stan's fist connect with Hunter's jaw. Amy gasped and rushed over to her boyfriend who was now sprawled on the floor.

"Stan!" I yelled at him and grabbed his arm. He was seething with rage, it was rolling off his in waves. "Why did you do that?" I demanded but he just shrugged at me.

"He hurt you, so I hurt him," He said simply. I slapped his arm in rage.

"I don't care about him, you idiot! You are so stupid!" I yelled rushing over to Amy who was next to the apparently pissed off Hunter. He didn't lunge towards Stan and I was glad for that. Onlookers had already dispersed and went back to there food. I slipped out my wand and said "Episkey" and Hunter's jaw mended. I waved goodbye and stormed out of the restaurant purposely bumping into Stan who hadn't moved an inch. I apparated home and tore up the stairs and headed towards the room ignoring Abby's calls. I slammed the door and muttered every locking spell I could manage. I threw myself down on the bed and resisted the urge to throw something. Angry tears spilled down my cheeks. Stupid Stan. Stupid! Why would he do that? They just came over to have a probably awkward conversation. Hunter probably just wanted his remote back, the idiot. Maybe he just punched Hunter because he was jealous of his ex-girlfriend. That was probably it. She had the biggest tits I'd ever seen, bigger than Sunny's and much bigger than mine. I heard a tap from the window but ignored it. Stan could wingardium leviosa his ass somewhere else. I pressed my face deeper into the pillow. Maybe if I was lucky Stan would fall and break his neck. I immediately regretted thinking that. What if I jinxed it and now he did fall? There was another knock on the window. I hurriedly ran to the window and flung it open to let him in. He sloppily fell on the floor and a burst of cold wind came with him. I closed the window and lay down on the bed again.

"Brooke," He said but I snuggled closer to the pillow and closed my eyes intent on ignoring him. "I'm sorry. I got jealous," He said. I knew it; I knew he was jealous of that slut. He probably just liked her because she was so much better looking than me. Tears started coming down on my face.

"Well if she's so pretty why don't you go and date her then," I spat. Then I heard laughter. That jerk had the nerve to laugh! I turned around and threw the pillow at him. He just laughed more.

"I hate you!" I yelled at him. His laughter faded suddenly. Guilt crept up towards me. "No I don't." I said in afterthought. I sat up on the bed. I quickly wiped the tears away from my eyes, he had lost the right to see me vunerable.

"Brooke, you don't understand. I'm jealous because of you! You're so beautiful every guy wants to have you. I just…" He ran his hand through his hair and came closer to me slowly. "I just don't want to lose you to a punk like that ever again." I still averted my gaze from him and I heard him sigh.

"You didn't have to hit him," I said sulkily. I sounded like a toddler who needed a nap. Which in truth, I probably did.

"I know. I apologized to him." He said quietly. He grabbed my hand before I could pull away and sat down next to me. "Don't be mad at me."

"I'm not mad at you, I mad at what you did," I said and leaned back onto his chest. Even though I was mad at him, my body acted on it's own accord. He kissed the top of my head. I hated when he did that. I loved him.

"I'm sorry, Brooke," He said rubbing small circle of the back of my hand with his thumb. Merlin, I loved him.


	13. Family Reunion

Disclaimer: I don't own it- You don't own it- No one owns it- except JK Rowling

A/N: Sorry it took so long to upload! Forgive and review!

I crept in to the bed, next to a sleeping Stan. I brushed his brown hair away from his temple and kissed his cheek. He looked like an angel. I traced a scar behind his ear, wondering its story, and kissed collarbone. Suddenly I felt as if I was molesting him and stopped. I snuggled in closer to him. I could feel his breath on my neck and it tickled but I didn't want to move away. That is how I fell asleep.

I awoke in Stan's arms. He would just be stirring, yet he was too stubborn to actually open his eyes. Eventually he would blink his eyes and see me. His grip would tighten on my waist and he would lean in and kiss my forehead as I pretended to be asleep. That is how I woke up.

But that morning I was not awoken by the familiar sense of Stan's lips on my skin. I heard a clawing at the window. A brown barn owl was tapping against the window. It was still dark outside. I looked over to Stan his mouth slightly agape as I took his arms off of me and shuffled to the window. The glass was cold as I opened the window. The owl swooped in, grateful to be getting out of the cold, and stuck out its leg to me. I unraveled the note. The bird waited watching me carefully.

Brooke,

I know you don't want to talk to me. I understand and respect your decision. Yet, I am afraid I have some bad news. Your father is dying. Stacy has just sent me an owl with the news and I am sending the same owl to you. Please come to the house and we will go and see your father together.

Your Mother

I read and reread the letter once, twice, three times. I recognized my mother's writing, much like mine, we did our a's the same way. It seemed funny to me that my mother, after not contacting me for 8 years, had sent me a letter about a man she told me each day that she hated. I remember starting each day of school with that phrase when I was younger, "Have fun, Brooke. Don't play with any idiots like your father." Even though I didn't want to, I knew I had to go and visit with my dad. Even though I hadn't spoken with my father in more than a decade, I knew I would regret it if I didn't visit him. Stan started to turn around in his sleep. I sat on the chair by his desk and watched the sunrise while the owl hooted around me happily. Only when Stan opened his eyes, he seemed to register the fact I was not in the bed.

"Why are you up already?" He asked as he sat up. He looked over towards the owl.

"Stan," I started and took a breath. "Would you like to meet my father?"

We arrived at my mother's house at 7. A note was left in the kitchen for Abby and Mum to read when they started their day. I gripped Stan's hand after our feet touched the ground. We both stayed silent. The house was aligned with the other houses on the street. It seemed happy; it seemed normal. But inside lay my room with my bed where I cried continually throughout my teenage summers. Finally when I seemed ready I pulled Stan along to ring the doorbell. It felt strange, ringing the doorbell I had a key for. It was under the bed, tucked in a page of my diary. I gave a shaky smile to Stan, showing I was all right. He remained melancholy. I knew how he felt about my mom though he had never told me. The door opened seconds later and in it's wake stood my mother. She seemed skinnier than before, her hips still prominent though. Her high forehead was broken out and her brown hair was limp and lanky with gray speckling in it. She pulled me into a hug before I could get any words in. Stan dropped my hand so I could properly hug my mother. She patted my back as if she expected me to cry and my arms hung limply at my sides. She pulled back and smiled at me. She turned to Stan and her smile faded.

"You two are still together?" She asked, her voice tinkling like bells. It didn't match her appearance, it never did. She had been opera singer before she met my dad, she probably could have still been.

"Yes ma'am," Stan said lying with no trace of remorse. I clasped his hand in mine again.

"I thought you would have picked someone more suitable. Someone…human." She said. Her tone, I knew, meant she wasn't trying to be rude. But still I felt Stan stiffen.

"Stan is human, Mother. He is the most caring person I know." _Better than you_. I wanted to say but didn't. She awkwardly hugged Stan and led us inside where empty cups lay at my kitchen table. I could see the house was almost the same. It held the same pictures, same atmosphere. She quickly filled our cups with tea, which we sipped quietly.

"What's wrong with Dad?" I asked. Although truthfully I wasn't surprised Dad was going so soon. Everyone in his family had died before the age of 60.

"It's his heart. Something that even magic can't fix," She said spitting at the word. I felt like crying again. Stan hand found mine under the table and squeezed it.  
"We should get going then," I said standing up. I had only been my dad's house once before. It was a short visit.

"I've looked online and the next plane doesn't leave until tomorrow," My mother said. Stan stared at her blankly.

"We will side-along apparate," I stated and I took her hand. Her face showed fear. She had only done it once before and vomited twice afterward. I told Stan the address and I took my mother's hand again, concentrating on the big house I had seen only once. We arrived seconds later and I looked over to see my mother barf all over the snow. It splattered in every direction. Stan materialized just inches away form the mess. Mother rubbed her hand across her mouth and composed herself. I took out my wand to my mother's surprise and cleaned the mess up. She seemed unimpressed and walked up the concrete porch steps and towards the huge white mansion. My mother was on a mission. I grabbed Stan's hand yet again; grateful I had brought him along. Mother rang the doorbell and a woman with black hair and a sickly complexion answered.

"Stacy," I said coolly. She wrinkled her nose to see I had brought my mother. _A muggle, _I could hear her sneer in her mind. "This is my Mother, Kate. And this is my boyfriend, Stan. Now where's my dad? If I wanted to talk to an ugly half-blood hater, I would have gone straight to Voldemort." I said. I was even surprised by my eagerness to make Stacy mad. Stan clenched my hand tighter but I had no feelings of remorse. She sneered and led us past several bedrooms, turning left and right down the halls. Mother tried to act confident but I could see her resolution drain when she caught sight of the pictures moving.

"MUGGLE! MUGGLE! MUGGLE!" One portrait kept screaming. Finally we came to stop in front of a white door.

"You may disperse now, Stacy," I said coolly again. She needed no other excuse and took off down the hall, her high heels clicking. Who even wear high heels when they are spending the day at home? Bitch, I thought. I opened the door slowly worried about what I might see. Would I find my Dad hooked up to many machines, barely conscious? A bed lay in the middle of the room with a heart monitor, as I had predicted. But my dad was anything but unconscious. Several house elves were hovered around my Dad. He seemed awake and was talking excitedly to the house elves. When he saw us, a huge smile spread on his face. I couldn't help but smile back. I suddenly wondered if my dad had not contacted me these past years on Stacy's orders only. He had been locked up and that's why he hadn't been able to come and see me.

"Brooke, Kate." He said and I went over and hugged him. He looked over at Stan.

"Young man, who might you be?" He asked pointing to Stan. Stan put his hand out for my father to shake.

"I'm Brooke's boyfriend, Stanley Shunpike." He said in a deep voice. I could tell he was nervous.

"Good man. Good man. Well I've supposed you've heard the bad news. I've only got weeks to live." He said simply. "So here's what we'll do. I'll talk to you one at a time. It's easier that way. People have been coming all week to try and tell me some old regret or secret that hadn't mentioned before. They want to give me a heart attack; I'm starting to think. We'll go by Pureblood first. That's how it should be in the world, always," He said pointing at Stan. I gasped in shock. He wouldn't even talk to his own daughter first? Stan shook his head, his eyes wide.

"No. I think you should talk to your daughter and ex-wife first. You shouldn't go by blood, go by how long you've known them." He was surprised at what my father had said too. I thanked him silently.

"So modest, young man. Fine then, I will talk to the muggle." He said and dismissed Stan and I. This did not offend my mother. I had enough sense as a child never to mention the status to her.

I closed the door on the two of them and sat down on an uncomfortable couch in a sitting area outside of the room.

"Your dad is, no offense, stupid. I have even known him for more than 5 minutes but that's how I feel. How can he not see how great you are?" He asked searching my eyes for something. We stayed silent after that, our hands entangled in each other's. I tried to listen to what my mother and father were talking about but I couldn't hear anything. He must have put the muffliato or silencing charm on the door. But still I stood with my ear poised and breathing softly. After about 10 minutes, Mother came out looking wary and took a place next to Stan.

"Half-blood!" I heard my dad cry from the room, motioning me in with his hand. I closed the door behind me. "Brooke. I don't know if you remember but your mother and I broke up for a good reason." I nodded even though I didn't remember. "Back then I was young and stupid, marrying a muggle wasn't uncommon, before the Dark Lord, you see? Then we had you and the Dark Lord rose to power. Some might say that I left to protect you and in some ways I did." I smiled him. I always knew he had left to protect us. "In others, I realized the error of my ways. I realized marrying a muggle was not the best choice. I wanted to be involved in the wizarding community and to do that I would need to marry a pureblood like myself. So I divorced your mother and now I have Stacy and we are right for each other, we have the same beliefs." He finished, by then I was crying. He said this so matter of fact; like leaving us was something he did every other day. So I was just come mistake he made? A coming of age tool? "I want you to marry Stan. Marrying a pureblood is good. Then you'll be accepted." I hated him, I remembered now. It suddenly came back to me. It wasn't my mother's fault for disliking my dad.

"No, Dad, you don't understand." I said, "Stan and his family accept me, and they wouldn't care if I were a pureblood or even a muggle. They love me and I love them. You did make a mistake and the mistake was leaving. I am great if you would have gotten to know me. If I ever married Stan it wouldn't be because I love him not because he's a pureblood. You are sick you know that? But since this is most likely the last time I will talk to you I am forced to say: I love you. Goodbye," I finished and stood up. I brushed away my tears and headed towards the door. I took one last look at my father. He was lying back on the bed looking considerably more worn than when had arrived. He was already bald completely but he had a thick mustache. I thought I could see tears in his eyes, but then I realized he was just yawning. And then I closed the door.

Stan went in after me, looking more shaken than I'd seen him in a while.

"Mother, why couldn't you have told me how awful he is?" I asked. She just smiled at me.

"Honey, I did. Everyday." She smiled sadly. "You know I want you to be happy. I just wonder if you're going to be happy with the life you're choosing." She put her hand lightly over mind.

"I know I'm going to be happy, Mother. I love him." I said whispering the last part and looking around to see if anyone heard. Mother smiled and took my face in her hands.

"You've become so beautiful. I wished I would have been there." She broke down crying and fell onto my shoulder I began crying too, silent tears and then big racking sobs and that's how Stan found us. He rubbed my back and looked unsure of what to do.

"Um… It's ok Mrs. Flintwood." He said as if in a question. Through her tears my mother laughed.

"Son, it's Kate, please." She said patting Stan on the back.

"Yes ma'am," He said.

"What did you talk about? You obviously didn't have any secrets or unknown grudges." I said after I'd calmed down, looking at Stan who had blushed a deep red.

"Oh… you know." He said shrugging it off.

"No tell me," I said pushing his shoulder playfully.

"I can't. It's a secret… mostly." He said smiling devilishly. I smiled back.

"He always does that," I told Mother who had witnessed it. We apparated back to my mother's house and Mother didn't even vomit this time. She made another pot of tea as Stan and I sat down at the kitchen table.

"Tell me. I won't tell anyone," I said bugging him.

"No! Brooke I can't!" His ears had turned red again. I dropped the subject when Mother returned from the kitchen.

"Go and show Stan your room, dear." She said in a loving voice.

"He's already seen it." I hated to bring up the last time Stan had visited. He suddenly stood up beside me.

"Bathroom," He said and shuffled down the hall, not having to ask where it was.

"I guess that's our cue to talk," I said sighing. Mother looked eager.

"Brooke, I forgot to say. I'm sorry. I really am. I'm sorry I drove you out of the house. I'm sorry I made you cry. I just… I want to be able to talk to you regularly again. I want to be able to go to your wedding and I want to be able to visit my grandchildren but I can't do that if you're still mad at me. So what we need to do is talk. I want you tell me what you hate about me," She said in a rush. I blushed when she mentioned marriage and kids. But truth be told, I didn't even feel an ounce of hatred towards my mother anymore. She was just being concerned the whole time, right?

"I forgive you, Mother. Truthfully this time too. I just want to know why you didn't contact me for 8 years. Why had it taken my father's ailing health to bring us back together?" I asked. The same could be said for me too though. I hadn't made any effort to contact my mother.

"I was bitter as I'm sure you were too." She said simply. We were silent for a while and Stan came back in looking flustered. Obviously he had been listening in.

"I'm sure my mother would love to meet you," Stan said as he finished his tea.

"Definitely. Mum loves everyone! She's so nice. You should come over for lunch one day." I said excitedly. Mother looked at me quizzically. I looked back at her. What?

"What about today? I'm sure Mum wouldn't mind having an extra guest for lunch." Stan said catching my excitement.

"I'll send a patronus!" I said gleefully and raised my wand. A crow erupted from the tip of my wand and warmth suddenly filled the poorly insulated house. I whispered my message and sent it of grateful that the rules of magic in front of muggles had been slackened if you were related. Mom looked in horror though.

"They're good!" Stan said defensively. Mother's shocked face slowly settled back into normality. Stan looked at the clock on the stove. It was already past 11.

"C'mon Mother!" I said. I was jubilant. My mother would be meeting my real family. I grabbed her hand and disapparated on the spot. Mother this time vomited again. I should have done a countdown or something. Stan rubbed her back as she leaned on my shoulder. We walked up towards the big house. Stan knocked and then unlocked the door. I laughed at the notion of Mum running around trying to clean last minute things.

"Mum!" I yelled into the house with a smile on my face. Mum came around the corner and discreetly put the broom in a crevice. "Mum." I said again smiled. My mother looked on in confusion. "This is my mother, Kate," I said pointing at Mother. Mum quickly ran over to her and gave her a big squeeze, which I'm sure Mother wasn't expecting. We were never big on hugs. I saw Abby, her face filled with curiosity come around the corner. "This is Abby." I said proudly standing behind Abby and pushing her forward though she had suddenly become shy and pulled away. I laughed anyway. "There's Maddie and Tyler too but they're at Hogwarts. They were here for Christmas. Tyler is so good at quidditch; we played a quick game everyday. Abby says she wants to be a keeper when she grows up, right, Abby?" I asked her as we settled down at the table. The table, the same as during Christmas, had been enlarged and could know sit 5 comfortably. I couldn't stop babbling all throughout lunch, I don't even think the other's got a word in. "This is the bracelet she gave me," I said continuing my story of Christmas. My face beamed with pride. "I just wish you could see a picture-" I slapped my head. "I'll be right back." I said climbing the stairs to my room to find the pictures I had just printed out from Christmas. I grabbed the pictures of the desk and headed downstairs again. I came downstairs to find Abby, mid-story, about something.

"Then everyone said 'Oh you're married! You're married!' and I'm like 'They aren't married,'" She said and everyone laughed politely. I handed Mother the pictures and pointed out people and faces. "I hang them up beside the bed. The good ones anyway,"

"You live here?" My mother asked in shock. I stared at her.

"Yeah!" I said as if this was obvious. Mother stayed silent and suddenly I lost my train of thought. I stayed quiet. Mum began to talk to Mother about gardening while Abby began to talk to me about that morning.

"Mum was in hysterics. She was practically bawling when she found the note. She thought you two eloped in Las Vega," She said and I blushed.

"Las Vegas," I corrected her. She nodded and continued with the story but I was barely listening. Did Mother not want me to live here? But this was my family! Lunch finished quickly after that and it was already 3. Ugh, I only had two hours left. "Mother, I'll teach you how to use an owl and we can contact each other." I told her and led her outside. We went to the barn in the backyard where owl's came and went freely. I called one of the owls down and taught Mother how to tie a letter to its leg.

"You sleep in the same room," She said interrupting. At first I thought she was talking about the owls, but then I realized she meant Stan and me. It was not a question but a statement.

"Yes," I admitted sheepishly. She stared at the owls. "We don't do anything… we just cuddle." I said embarrassed.

"I understand. I really do. Just don't do anything stupid. Use protection." She said staring deeply at a white owl. I blushed a deep red and I felt my face flame. I nodded a stiff nod. She left soon afterward, my mind still clouded with her words. I apparated her back to the house and I waved goodbye to my mother as I disappeared back home, a slight pink tint on my ears. As I went to sleep that night after work, I looked over at the picture I had put up early that day. My Mother was sitting next to Mum, with a smile affectionately on her lips. Stan smiled widely into the camera, holding Abby in his arms, he took his sister and tossed her into the air and caught her and then did the whole thing again. There, in that moving picture, was my family.


	14. Rejection

Disclaimer: Not mine!

A/N: Hello again... friend of a friend. No, sorry it took so long to upload but I have a pretty hectic lifestyle (which includes me watching movies on HBO and then falling asleep re-reading the HP's). Please review and favorite and etc. Love ya!

On February 1rst, I got a phone call from my mother. I examined my new phone for a while, searching for a button to show me how to answer it. Growing up, I only had 1 house phone and even then I barely used it. When Mother asked me if I want her old cell phone a week ago, I think it was rather pure curiosity than actual need that made me accept it. Finally when I found the answer button (green) my mother was in hysterics.

"Oh baby! Your father's dead. Heart attack during the night, they thought he was sleeping. There's no funeral. They already cremated him. Oh Gosh, baby, I'm so sorry," She said crying. I listened to her sobs for a few seconds when it hit me. My dad was dead. I felt no immediate sadness, as I knew I wouldn't. After finding out the truth about my dad, I had only been cursing him. Cursing the man for leaving and cursing him for not staying far enough away. Stan, however who had been listening in quite intently, came over to me and wrapped me into a hug. Mother was sobbing uncontrollably on the phone and Stan was rubbing patterns in my back. I hung up on my mother, not bothering to say goodbye, and pushed Stan away. Why did they expect me to be sad about someone like that? Shouldn't I be celebrating? I went onto the porch and sat on the porch swing. It swayed slightly under my weight. Maybe if I thought deeply about it, I would suddenly burst into tears. I watch as the snow fell, it was almost angelic, and it didn't match. I heard the front door open and where I expected Stan, I found Mum, looking at me sadly. She smiled weakly at me.

"Can I take this seat?" She asked me as she sat down beside me. We stayed silent for a while, rocking in time, when Mum spoke up. "Both of my parents died when I was 18, did you know that?" She asked. I shook my head, though I was lying. I had read it in Mr. Shunpike's diary. It said she had cried for weeks. Poor Mum "I didn't cry at first. I guess I was in shock. I worked, as I did back then in the Ministry, normally and no one knew, about their deaths that is. I would have thought someone would have heard and tell me how sorry they were, but murders were normal back then and I got no sympathy. I came home and had dinner with Greg, and everything was fine. I didn't tell anyone until a week later when it finally hit me. I never got to tell them goodbye." She stared deeply into the snow. She wasn't sitting with me anymore, now she was far away. She suddenly snapped back into reality. I remembered the last words I'd said to my father.

"I love you, goodbye." I spoke aloud. It sounded almost sincere when I said it now, not filled with the spite and hatred as it had before. I had been lucky, I had been able to say goodbye. Mum hadn't.

I lived in a daze almost. My father's death was just another blemish on my life, a tainted spot. I would get over it, I always did. I didn't cry. I refused to. Still Stan had the nerve to ask me if I was all right every few hours.

"If you ever need to talk you know where I am." He said sincerely after dinner. We had been so out of sync since my father's death. We couldn't have a normal conversation anymore. I would always end up angry and Stan confused. Didn't he understand the last thing I wanted to do was talk about it? I had no regrets about my father's death, we had been expecting it, I had said my goodbyes. But sometimes I wondered if I should have treated him differently. I realized then the reason why I felt no sadness was because a different emotion replaced it, anger.

"Are you doing anything tomorrow?" Mum said one night at dinner looking from Stan to me.

"I don't think so. Why?" I said and ate another bit of corn. I hated corn.

"It's Valentine's Day. I thought you two were going on a date?" Abby piped in. Abby, my best friend now, had been a constant talker. She didn't want me to talk and instead filled the silence with her own voice. Merlin bless her.

"Yeah, Brooke. Let's go on a date. We haven't been alone in a long time," He said, even now his devilish grin was strained.

"Fine," I said and truthfully I didn't care. The excitement that usually filled me was now gone. I had nothing left.

That night I cried, I cried hard. Tears streamed down my face and I was screaming in rage. It contradicted all of my arguments where I had stood my ground that I was an independent woman and didn't need to break down every other second. I felt stupid and exposed as the tears came from an unknown source. I cursed whom ever it was who gave me tear ducts. Stan stood awkwardly to the side, I had yelled at him to stay away every other time we talked and now he didn't know what to do.

"Can you leave me alone?" I gulped in between sobs, "Sleep downstairs tonight, please," I begged as tears pricked at my eyes again. Stan nodded unwillingly, grabbed a pillow and blanket and headed out the door. I didn't know how it started. I had been doing nothing, sitting on the bed, when Stan came in with a smile, ready to pull me close and go to bed when I caught sight of the journal Stan's father had written on the desk. My father never wrote a journal. I would never figure out what he was thinking. He would always forever be the cruel man who acted as a sperm bank to me. He had probably felt no regret for his actions and if he had I would never know it. I fell asleep on the bed from exhaustion. The pillow was wet, either from tears or slobber I would never figure out when I awoke. I sat up slowly and my eyes were swollen. I cursed myself. I hated crying for something so stupid. I was so stupid. I prayed though. I prayed that now that I had cried that I would be able to return to normal. I wanted to be out of this funk. I wanted to hug Stan and feel a blush rise to my cheeks. I wanted to be able to smile truthfully at Mum. I got dressed quickly. A date with Stan, a normal date would be good. I tried to smile and ran downstairs to Stan who was still asleep on the couch. His hair was standing up as if he'd been running his hands through it. I poked him. Normal, I thought, act normal. He jerked awake and looked at me. I knelt down near his face.

"Hey," He said groggily. He touched my cheek and I begged my heart to speed up. It did thankfully.

"Hey," I whispered back. "You ready? I was thinking we'd-" But he interrupted me. Apparently my forced conversation had set him back to his original clock.

"I got you a present," He said and smiled, a real smile this time. "I didn't know if you'd want it though since…" He trailed off and looked at me again. He hopped up and we headed upstairs together. He grabbed my hand and I gasped in shock. We rarely touched in the past two weeks. Even sleeping in the same bed we managed to keep our space. I blushed; I felt it rise up in my cheeks. I smiled and squealed with glee. I should cry more often, I thought, it's so much simpler. Stan smiled again. I loved him. I knew it for the first time in weeks. I knew it. Things may be awkward right now but in the end I loved him. We reached the room and Stan dropped to the ground and searched around under the bed.

"I guess I need a new spot to put my tampons," I said smiling at Stan as he felt around under the bed.

"And your diary," He smiled and it was devilish. Not a hint of strain, just pure Stan. "Here!" He said at last and pulled out a small package. My hands instinctively wrapped around my necklace. I hadn't taken it off since Stan had given it to me on Christmas Eve, except for showers. Lately it had been a deep blue but now it had returned to it's usual light pink. Stan wrapped his arms around my shoulder and pulled me down to sit on the bed with him. He slipped me the pink wrapped package. I tore it open and saw a small vial of perfume. "It changes to the owner's favorite scent," He said. I laughed.

"Isn't that just the easy way out? You couldn't just figure out what my favorite scent was, you had to buy me a special perfume," I said in a strained joke. Had I taken it to far? But no, Stan seemed oblivious to my discomfort and roared into a laugh I hadn't heard for weeks.

"Put it on," He urged and I opened the bottle. It was a clear container filled with what looked like water, somewhat reminding me of Veritaserum. The moment I opened the bottle the clear water changed to a deep red, just a shade off of blood. I raised it to my nose and sniffed, cinnamon. I laughed and put some on my wrists. I waved it in front of Stan and he held a confused expression.

"Cinnamon? Why cinnamon?" He asked and I laughed again, freely.

"That's what you smell like," I answered and went to the closet to pick out my clothes for the day.

We arrived at a muggle movie theater and I sighed. Stan had always wanted to go to one before we just never had time.

"I'm picking where we're going on the next date!" I said and sighed. We got in line behind a gaggle of people. Eventually we reached the front. Stan had stayed silent and gazed around at the gaudy carpeted walls and huge posters advertising new movies. I looked over the movie list set on an action flick Mother and I had briefly talked about. We bought our tickets, Stan still carried around muggle money thank God, and we headed towards out theater.

"You just get to go in? What if someone goes into the wrong movie?" He said excitedly.

"Some people do," I said as he opened the door for me. Secretly I was glad Stan had picked a movie, we wouldn't have to talk much. We opened the door to a near deserted movie theater. Only one employee cleaning aisles was in there besides us. He hurried out as he caught sight of us quickly and Stan let out a howl of laughter.

"Guess we've got the whole place to ourselves! Now we snog and talk loudly. Pull out your tellyphone, I hear they hate it when you do that," He said smiling and I couldn't help but give a chuckle. I had always wanted to go to a deserted movie too. The movie started soon after, Stan and I in the best spot in theater. I downed most of the popcorn during the previews but pulled out my wand a muttered a Refilling Charm. It wasn't really stealing, was it? Half way through the last advertisement a family came in. A mother, father and 3 young children all gathered in the row directly in front of us.

"Well there goes my plans," Muttered Stan said and I couldn't help but let out a giggle. I grabbed his hand, which lay unprotected on armrest. He gave my hand a squeeze and we watched the movie in silence.

The credits rolled and I quickly took my head off of Stan's shoulder. The lights turned back on and I saw Stan's eyes were closed. He had fallen asleep. I laughed and thought of my own experience at my first movie. I begged my mother for hours to take me to see a new Disney movie and ten minutes into the movie I had fallen asleep.

"Stan," I said poking his shoulder. Then a thought struck me. If I kissed him now I would definitely be able to handle it later on. I heard the door slam as the other family left the theater. Good riddance. I pursed my lips and leaned down to touch Stan's own vunerable ones. Instead of it making me feel less nervous, my palms broke out into a sweat. What if he wanted to kiss me again at the end of the night? My eyes glazed with the thought and I let out an involuntary giggle. I missed the feelings of Stan's body pressing into mine at night; I missed being able to kiss him without notice. I sighed and poked Stan again. He awoke with a start and looked around in confusion. He groaned when he realized what had happened.

"When'd you fall asleep?" I asked him dreamily. His lips answered but I couldn't hear him. They moved again and I was suddenly aware I was noticeably staring at Stan's lips. I jerked my eyes to his and my heart skipped a beat. He was staring at me as I had been with him, only looking at my lips. "Kiss me, please," I whispered as he lurched forward. Our lips met hungrily. After not touching for weeks we seemed to be making up for it.

"I missed you so much," He said as we took breaths. I pressed my lips against his once again thinking about what he said. I hadn't gone away, I had been next to him the entire time yet still he missed me. I missed him too. How strange.

"Ma'am, sir, we need you to clear out. The next show will start soon," said a voice faraway. I broke away from Stan, who was looking as discombobulated as me. We turned towards the sound and there stood one of the movie theater's employees; he looked awkward and shifted his feet uncomfortably. I was so out of it, I didn't even blush. Stan and I walked out of the movie theater hand in hand. We reached the alley where we had appeared in. Stan was immediately all over me, kissing my lips, running his hands up and down my back. He tentatively put his hands under my shirt, tracing his hands on my stomach. I couldn't help but gasp into Stan's mouth as he reached higher and grabbed onto my breasts. I pulled away awkwardly and he frowned.

"Sorry," He mumbled and grabbed at my hand. My face blushed a deep red when we reappeared with a pop. I looked around as my eyes adjusted to the new lighting opposed to the darkness of the covered alleyway. Stan gripped my hand tighter and I looked over at him, he was smiling again. "I know you've always wanted to go again," He said, obviously proud of himself. I looked in front of me and there it was.

"The park!" I screamed at ran across the pea gravel to the swing. We had sat there on so many summers for so many nights. I giggled like schoolgirl. "I'll race you!" I said with a grin and took off in a sprint towards the slide. Stan's smiled wider, if possible, and chased after me. He caught up to me in seconds and pulled me off the ground and into a hug. He kissed my cheek and set me down. "I love you," I said smiling as it slipped out. My expression changed immediately to one of shock. I put a hand in front of my mouth. I can't believe how stupid I was! How could I have let something so important come out? I didn't dare look at Stan; the tears blocked my vision anyway. I was so happy how things were and now I've gone and screwed things up. I always screwed things up.

"No you don't," Stan said and I realized I spoke these words aloud. I closed my eyes shut tight. It was just a nightmare, just a nightmare. I squeezed my eyes even tighter, so tight that stars had begun to form in front of me. "Brooke," said in a stressed tone. My eyes immediately popped open and I looked at him. "Why do you always do that?" He said with a serious tone, something Stan rarely used. I just stared at him. What? I always tell people I love them? "Why do you always think the worst of me, of everyone for that matter? Did it ever cross your mind that I might love you too?" He waved his arms as he talked, giving me yet another distraction to not look in his face. My mouth fell open, my jaw making a faint clicking sound as I opened and shut it several times in succession. Hr couldn't be serious? Stan loved me? Then again, he hadn't said it. All he'd said was- "Stop it, I can read you like a book. I said it and I'll say it again. Over and over, it doesn't matter, as many times as it takes to get you to understand." He said exasperatedly. I gasped at him. Surely he didn't mean- "Brooke, I love you. I've loved you since you arrived on the Knight Bus some 9 years ago. I love you." He said these words delicately as if walking on eggshells. I jumped into his arms some few seconds later when his words finally settled in. He loves me! And for some kooky reason, I believed him. We held each other for some time, comfortable in each other's arms. I knew I was home as he shifted slightly to pull me in even closer. I felt his breath on my head. My head was spinning still long after we had apparated home. I looked up from the dinner table later that even and caught Stan staring at me. I winked and he returned to his corn. Even now the yellow bane of my existence seemed all right. If Stan made corn look good he really must be doing things to me. The words fell into my head as easily as they had when 'I love you' had first become a ritual mantra in my brain, 'He's The One.'


	15. The One

Disclaimer: I don't own- blah blah

A/N: Sorry it took so long to upload! Hope you enjoy. I've been trying to make the paragraphs smaller for an easier read. Thanks guys! Imperio! Now, of course, I command you to write a review. Thanks again!

Of course realizing that in fact I wanted to marry the man who slept next to me each night had little affect over me. Was I just supposed to blurt out my future aspirations to him in the middle of supper? I laughed just at the thought. Besides that we've only been dating for 3 months so I was sure that the thought hadn't crossed his mind.

I laughed as I remembered when I was 14, I pictured myself 10 years later already married with a baby, and now here I was 26 and just now getting into a serious relationship. I thought of my mother, married at 20 and she had me at 21. I sighed. I tried not to let my heart beat to fast as Stan bid me a goodbye kiss. Just a kiss on my cheek got my heart pumping. I couldn't help but picture Stan stark naked as he kissed me goodbye and it took me several minutes to calm myself enough to even consider apparating.

I arrived at my mother's house at 12, just in time for our weekly lunches, instated when we had been reconnected. She let me in and let me see the food she made. I could see the proud look on her face and I knew she had worked all morning on the foods. Cooking had never been Mother's strong suit. In front of me lay macaroni and cheese with green beans and mashed potatoes. Mother looked at with happiness while waiting for my views.

"It smells great," I said truthfully and sat down across from her. The macaroni was good although slightly rubbery and the instant mashed potatoes really did look like a runny soup, but I ate all of it hoping not to hurt my mother's feelings. Mother told me about her work, she was an office clerk for some big shot company. Really I didn't care whom Linda was dating, or that Rob missed that promotion. With all her talking I had barely any time to get a word in.

"You know Stan, right?" I started dumbly when Mother had returned to her green beans after a particularly long-winded speech about her coworkers. Mother nodded at me. Well, duh, they had only eaten together like 5 times. "Well, you know we're dating, right?" I asked. Mother nodded and swallowed the green beans in her mouth with a gulp. "Well, we told each other that we loved each other," I said with a rush and my face turned to beet red. "I think he's you know… the One." I mumbled quickly. Mother just stared blankly at me.

"Ok," She said nothing afterward. I shifted uncomfortably in my chair I begged Mother to say something else. She seemed perfectly happy with the silence and continued to eat her macaroni with a smile. I sighed loudly to show her she should say something more.

"What?" She said and cocked her head. "Do you want my approval or something?" Her tone said she was being facetious. I felt an unwanted blush rise to my cheeks. What had I been expecting? I needed friends. I was trying to have a girl talk with my mother for Merlin's sake! I sighed again for my own sake. I left soon after with a thought in my head. I had only one girl friend in my entire life. Her name was Rachel and she was bubbly and talked more than anyone else I knew. She was loud and assertive yet smarter than Einstein. She was a fellow Ravenclaw with me. She was a highly respected pureblood and because of that she had an arranged marriage. We hadn't talked since the summer after graduation; she was married with in seconds of receiving her diploma. She moved to America with her new husband in tow and started working on Merlin knows what. We owled each other over the summer but when she after a rather short and rude letter we stopped conversing. Last I heard, she had 3 kids already and was graying. I shuddered. Three kids at our age? We were only 26! I opened the Shunpike's with my new key and was surprised to find it eerily quiet.

Oh crap. I suddenly remembered that the night before I was bestowed the chore of getting rid of the trash. I had completely forgotten. Mum was going to kill me. Act cool, I told myself as I headed warily to the kitchen. A figure came from around the corner suddenly.

"I swear I forgot! Please don't kick me out! I'll do it for the next three months I swear!" I yelled and squeezed my eyes shut. Wait, the figure that came around the corner was much too small to be Mum's.

"What are you talking about?" Abby said and I opened my eyes, suspicions confirmed.

"Oh nothing," I said not looking her in the eye. I looked outside to the melting snow. The days had slowly started becoming warmer even though it was only the middle of February. Abby's snowmen were now reduced to balls of snow. "Where's Mum?" I asked her as I said a vanishing spell to the undisturbed trash I found still in the place I had left it the day before.

"Stan and her went to lunch. I was left alone. I'm old enough now, you know." Abby said proudly. She had brought up her now 10 year old status in every conversation since her birthday on January 5th.

"Why?" I said getting out bread and peanut butter, Abby's new favorite lunch. I got out two glasses of milk and made lunch for the two of us. I could tell by Abby's loud stomach rumblings that she had yet to have lunch.

"I don't know. It was super secret. Maybe they're going to…" She trailed off deep in thought.

"Buy a rocket ship." I responded immediately

"Get me my own pygmy puff." Abby retorted with a dreamy look in her eyes.  
"Conquer the world."

"Get me my own owl."

Truth be told, my suggestions were outrageous as Abby's. Mum had expressed her dislike for pets constantly. She even went as far as to mention destroying the owl barn where the stray owls stayed. Abby and Stan had jumped all over her at even the notion.

Abby and I spent the rest of the day reading books in silence and shifting positions on the couch until we were comfortable. When Mum and Stan came home we were both lying upside down on the couch with out heads on the floor and the books perched in front of our noses. I jumped up and smoothed my skirt down as Abby followed suit. Stan chuckled. I immediately smiled. I had read 200 pages of an old wizarding book and was practically bored to tears. I needed to see that smile. I glanced at the clock; it was already 3. I mean who eats lunch for that long.

"Mum! Stan!" I said excitedly. I was already on Mum's heels as she steered herself into the kitchen. Stan followed after me, and Abby trailed after him. "Where were you guys?" I said suspiciously. It must have been important to leave especially Abby home alone and me out completely.

"Oh you know. We went out to lunch. I thought Abby told you," Mum said as she got out the croc pot.

"You go out to lunch without your daughter now?" I said picking up an apple and biting into it.

"Yes, she's getting a little plump in the middle you see," Stan piped in and we all laughed, even Abby who knew how ridiculous the comment seemed to her toothpick frame.

"We would have invited you two but I never get time alone with my son anymore." Mum said without much emotion. "He's too busy playing tonsil hockey with you, Brooke, or he's working." I blushed. I got it now. Her words and tone translated to drop it. A subject I was not included in as a biological part of the family. I couldn't help but feel excitement rise up in me. What if they were at Stan's dad's house? What if they made up? I squealed and slinked over to Stan. If she wouldn't give me any details I would make her suffer. Oh poor Mum didn't know what she was getting herself into. I had to suppress a giggle as I wrapped my arm around Stan and seductively rubbed his arm.

"Darling," I said in a low tone. I drew out the word so it seemed much more than two syllables. Stan stiffened and looked at me. I was aware of Mum's gaze on us. "What do you say we go up to your room and do a little bit of that… what was it? Oh yes, tonsil hockey your dear mother was talking about." I tried to imitate a voice I had once seen in a movie and the huskiness seemed to be working. Mum had tears in her eyes as I led Stan from the room, whether it was from laughter or sadness I would never know.

We did go up to Stan's room and we did play a rather brutal game of tonsil hockey. When we were finished and lay on the bed I tried to get it out of Stan. Of course, I thought mentally face palming myself; I could always seduce it out of Stan!

"So baby," I started, using one of the many dreaded pet names I hated.

"Don't even start." Stan said rolling over onto his back and placing his hands under his head. "You won't get it out of me. It's not even that important if you must know."

"So it's you dad, right? Did you get to visit him? Is all forgiven? We could go over and meet him again. You know, I haven't ever met your half siblings. What were their names?" I said forcing them out of him.

"Avery and Riley," He said and swallowed loudly, something I knew he only did when he was nervous. Aha!

"Oh, did you get to meet them when you went over there today?" I asked him with a smile. The only reason he didn't want to tell me was because he was too proud. He was always too stubborn admit that he was wrong.

"Brooke," He said suddenly and loudly. I jumped out of my fantasy.

"Yeah?" I said.

"Want to go on a date tomorrow?" He said clearing his throat.

"Uh, sure?" I said. I mean we had just gone on a date yesterday I added mentally. "I get to pick this time though!" I said with a smile and he frowned.

"No, I have to pick it this time. The next two times you can pick." He said sternly.

"Fine," I said grumpily and got up. I was thankful just a little bit though. Where would I take Stan? A restaurant and movie? I shuddered as I went down the steps as Mum called us for dinner.

I woke up early the next morning at 5. 5 hours of sleep for me was not good. I needed at least 8 to be pleasant, 9 if I would be nice. But no matter how hard I tried I couldn't fall back asleep. I kept my eyes closed hoping for sleep to lull me back into my unconscious but after an hour I realized that this wouldn't be possible. I got up and sat on the bed staring at the wall opposite of me, trying to wake up fully. Then I realized what was wrong. Stan wasn't there. The lump in the blanket I considered to be Stan's body was in fact just a blanket. I sat at the wall pondering this piece of news, too tired to do much else. I woke up again when the sun began peeping out of the windows. Instead of the slow wake up I had had some hours before I jumped straight out of the bed, landing with a crash. Where's Stan? I forgot I was supposed to be looking for him.

"Whoa, eager much?" I heard a voice from behind me. I turned around and caught the gaze of Stan's mousy brown hair. I laughed and threw myself in his arms. The unsuspecting Stan fell back into the bed yet that did not stop me.

"I woke up in the middle of the night and you weren't here," I said feigning a bad mood though truthfully I was a little upset. Wasn't it Stan's job to hold me all throughout the night? I thought Stan kissed my temple when I was sleeping as I did to his.

"I just couldn't sleep. I was downstairs, drinking milk," He said. Surprisingly I believed him. My mind was only on one thing. Where in the world was my morning kiss? Merlin, I loved him. "Love you," Stan managed to say as we gasped for breath. My hands were entangled in his hair. His hair was so soft. His hands were wrapped around my hips, pulling me in even closer than I could possibly imagine. I remembered when I was in 4th grade, my science teacher told us all that two atoms can never be in the same exact space at the same time. This statement shocked me and I spent hours pressing my fingers together to see if the would somehow occupy the same exact space. But now, with Stan, I felt we were getting pretty damn close. His hand slipped under my shirt and traced patterns on my stomach. His hand slowly slipped upward, unlike the night before I didn't stop him. He fondled my breast through the bra and goose bumps rose on my arm. Before I knew what I was doing I pulled away with a red face gasping for air.

"Sorry," We both said at the same time. I didn't know why I was getting so nervous. We had had sex before. It wasn't even good though. 17 and clumsy we had no clue what to do with our bodies. I had seen all the times in movies and in the occasional romance novel I had slipped past my mother all the men and women screaming in lust and having the times of their lives. With Stan all I remembered was pain and Stan's sweaty body rolling off of mine. I had only had one orgasm in my life. It was with Hunter and he was drunk and passed out seconds after it was finished. Jerk.

"Listen Brooke," Stan started. 'Listen Brooke,' he always started whenever he wanted to say something important. I rolled my eyes, what was I going to do instead? Get out my earplugs? "I love you." That would make it about the 15th time Stan had said those three words since the night before, yet they didn't seem any less sincere.

"I love you too," I said and blushed again.

"So let's go out to lunch."

Stan loved muggle places. I knew this based on the other dates we had had so I was surprised when he took me to Diagon Alley.

"Hmmm," I said as Stan led me to Foretescue's. I tried to hide my face as we passed by Bill's Steaks, Merlin forbid someone recognized me, but I was left unnoticed as we entered the ice cream parlor. We ordered out desserts and dug in.

"Ice cream for lunch? Stan! Your mother would be shocked!" I said in mock horror. Stan laughed along and pointed his spoon at me.

"Your mother would be horrified! Weren't you locked in a basement and fed nothing but 3 full meals a day? No dessert for you!" He said and I started laughing.

We spent the day browsing and re-browsing the aisles of the bookshops, the junk stores, anywhere that seemed friendly. Diagon Alley had expanded immensely since I had last been there before Christmas. The shops were bustling and people were actually lining up outside the shops. The alley itself seemed to have been expanded three fold and the sidewalks were large enough to fit 4 cars across. I had fun gripping Stan's hand as we worked ourselves in and out of the crowds. We were stopped every few minutes or so by a customer coming to thank Stan for his work on the Knight Bus. People I had never even dreamed of came up to him. A goblin even stopped Stan to thank him. I couldn't help but beam with pride and Stan couldn't get this really goofy grin of his face. Of course not all of it was perfect.

"Stan how's your father?" I said nonchalantly as I picked up a love potion and examined it as we walked through Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. Stan smiled and looked over to me.

"I don't know. Your guess is as good as mine," he looked over some gag gifts and smiled again.

"Stan, I know you are to stubborn to admit that you rekindled things with your father but I can read you like an open book!" I said a little too aggressively. Maybe I was projecting my own lost cause of a relationship with my father on to Stan. Probably I was, but you'd have to kill me to get that out of me. But if you think about it, Stan's feelings towards his father are important, Abby Maddy and Tyler all have forgiven their father. Just to think of all the luxuries Stan would be able to afford now that he didn't have to pay for the kid's school expenses.

"You can, can you?" He said with a smirk.

"Yes!" I said exasperatedly. "If you don't want to talk about it, I won't push you. But I just want what's best for you." I tried to sound sincere but that grin remained on his face. His eyes slid off of mine just long enough to glance at his watch.

"It's already 4. We should head home." Stan said and smiled wider. Before I had time to respond he had grabbed my arm. The feeling of being squashed into nothing barely had time to reach me before I felt solid ground under my feet. I opened my eyes and looked over at Stan, he squeezed my hand. Why was it that- Wait, where the hell were we? Did we get splinched? Did Stan not pay attention to the 'destination' part of apparation? In front of us stood a small building, three stories high but skinner than Abby's body. It was squashed into a row of similar looking house. I looked over at Stan in confusion but he just had an all too familiar smile on his face. Then it hit me. My breath caught in my throat. Was he really-? No, it couldn't be. But it might be! No it wouldn't, we just came here by accident.

"Brooke, here's home," He whispered. My confusion grew, my doubts slowly making way for elation.

"No," I squeaked in disbelief. My hands automatically covered my mouth and my eyes watered with tears.

"Listen Brooke, would like to move in with me? I bought the place, you see, just a few days ago. That's what I've been doing even before Valentine's Day. It's where I went to lunch today. I don't to feel like you have to. You can always just live with-" He started but I threw my arms over him. Oh Merlin! I couldn't believe this was happening! Stan and I, me and Stan, were moving in together! I was crying and laughing and kissing Stan's cheeks all at the same time.

"Are you serious?" I said still not fully believing it.

"No, I was joking about the whole thing. Ready to go to Mum's house?" He said and his eyes twinkled. I hit his arm and threw myself into his chest again.

"I love you," I said quietly again.

"I'll take that as a yes," Stan whispered in the same tone. I giggled as tears coursed done my face.

"Yes!" I said jubilantly.

We went back to Mum's place a few minutes later, work was just minutes away. Judging by Mum's expression she knew what had happened.

"Oh baby!" She said and ran towards me with her arms open for a big hug. I hugged her back tight. I love her. I love this family. I love Stan. I was just so happy. I even did a twirl on the way up the stairs. I quickly changed into my black robes and apparated to work. Time passed quickly as I daydreamed about Stan and me waking up late on a Sunday and reading the Daily Prophet together. I arrived that night in the Shunpike's abode and crawled right next to Stan who had his arms outstretched for me. I snuggled in deeper into Stan's chest as he murmured words of love into my hair. We fell asleep in each other's arms and awoke the same way, Stan snoring gently. I couldn't wait until I could officially spend the rest of my life with the man whose head rested so close to mine. Merlin I loved him.


	16. Amelia Lovegood

Disclaimer: I don't own

A/N: Well, I'm back. Sorry for the wait. Review please?

Moving was hard. We had to pack up every detail of Stan's room, which took less than an hour, than Merlin for magic yet, that wasn't even the worst part. The worst part was picking out furniture. I liked it of course. I loved picking out different colors to paint the rooms. I even imagined the most perfect curtains to fit the front window, Mum promised to try and make them for me.

The problem was money. Oh of course, we could buy the black leather couch… if we didn't want any other furniture. We could always get the perfect shower curtain…if we wanted to starve for the next week and a half. All that we had put in the condo in the condo where we now lived was a big mattress in the master bedroom and 2 different cereals. Eventually we got a rug we found in the junk shop, it had just been unjinxed, turns out someone had made it fly. We were donated a couch my mother had in her garage. It was covered in stains and the fabric was torn in several places. My idea of not eating anywhere but the kitchen was soon useless. Stan and I ate on the couch every night, facing towards each other.

Lunch was a different story entirely. Between going to my Mother's for lunch and going to Mum's, Stan and I were kept well fed and happy. Stan and I, however, had no romantic notions as the days passed. Living together in complete confinement had me so wary of what we were doing. Mum couldn't even interrupt us. What if one day we took things to far? My face felt hot with just the thought. My favorite time of the day was when I got home from work. Stan was already asleep on the bed and I would cuddle in close to him. One day at the end of March, I told myself I needed a coffee table. Who doesn't have a coffee table? Some might wonder, Brooke why are you concerned about putting furniture in your condo? I could even imagine after everything was furnished that eventually we would be able to a housewarming party. We could invite Al and his family and Mum and Mother. I even imagined Stan's father coming and there would be a big apology right in the living room. But in that daydream there was always a coffee table. That's how I began my day.

The weather had become increasingly cool and I thanked Merlin that Stan slept only in his boxers. I found Stan, in his 'pajamas', in the kitchen eating a bowl of cereal standing up and reading the Daily Prophet. My heart started to accelerate but I told it to stop. I mean I fell asleep in his arms every night, why would I get nervous just looking at him? He refused to meet my gaze and I knew I would have to pick out the table alone. Stan liked picking out furniture with me the first week we had moved in together but now he cowered at the mention of a duvet. Avoiding me seemed to be the trick for him to weasel out of helping me.

I apparated to Diagon Alley and proceeded to the faithful junk shop. Although it was in the wilder part of the alley, the junk shop had been my friend throughout the renovations. I had gotten two lamps, a rug, and a dresser all from there. The owner Jacob now treated me like a queen when I came into the nearly deserted store. Jacob was a kooky old man with big glasses and white whiskers. His white hair lay matted to the top of his head and an apron always stretched across his expanding waist.

"Brooke. Back again all ready?" He said with a smile and led to the back of the shop that kept the mismatched furniture.

"Yes, this time in search of a coffee table. Well, Jake, riddle me this. Why is it all men, you being the exception, hate shopping?" I said with a chuckle. He smiled as well, showing off his teeth, I could spy a gray tooth in the front. He closed his mouth quickly noticing my stare.

"We aren't good at it so we steer clear. You know us men, we never want to admit defeat," He responded casually. He showed me the two tables he had now. Jake had no inventory but instead he had a system where a person couldn't donate their "worthless" junk to the shop. Admittedly the shop did have some rather junky things, but some was good quality. I took my time peering at the table before deciding that neither would be good. One wobbled and the other was a hideous green color.

"You could always charm it off," Jake responded. But I shook my head.

"I'll check back next week. Bye Jake," I said as I exited the store. I began walking down Diagon Alley and suddenly felt self-conscious. What if people were staring at me?" I hugged my arms together across my chest and continued to walk forward at an accelerated pace, suddenly aware of my short skirt and flimsy t-shirt. This was definitely not my favorite part of Diagon Alley.

"Miss!" I heard someone call out from behind. My hammered and I began to run at full pace, fishing for my wand in my pocket. "Miss!" The person called after me again and I heard footfalls came closer to me. I felt a hand grip my should as my struggling hands found my wand.

"_Tarantallegra!" _I yelled screaming the first curse that came to mind. The body that was next to me suddenly began in a wild dance. I turned around to see who it was. Was it the bulky man I had seen outside of the shop? Was it the woman with white blonde hair and sharp chin who stared at me coldly as I entered? The dancing person next to me was neither of these people. Instead it looked to be a woman about my age. She looked so silly doing a strange dance. Her blonde hair danced wildly around her as she bobbed up and down and her bubble skirt was trashing all over the place.

"Can you make it stop?" She said warily as she jumped around and I said the counter curse. There was no way this woman would try to hurt me. She fell to her knees on the ground.

"Sorry…" I said trailing off. I noticed what she had held in her hand. My cherry red purse was dangling off of her fingers. Although the bobbing had stopped, the woman seemed to be shivering uncontrollably.

"You left this in the store over there. The man told me to give it to you," She said as the shivering slowed. She looked like she was going to be sick. I didn't know that my Dancing Feet Jinx would work so well. She deposited my handbag to me.

"I'm really sorry. I thought you were a thug or something," I said sheepishly and the woman looked unimpressed. "Let me buy you a tea," I said forcefully. I steered her to the nearest parlor. When we sat down she kept looking over her shoulder. "What's the matter?"

"You see," She started with a phrase I later learned to be her catchphrase. "I left my stand over their by the Junk Shop all alone. I thought I would only be gone for a few seconds, you see. I guess it doesn't really matter, it's only paper," She said in a friendly manner. It surprised me how pleasant she sounded. I couldn't imagine how her voice had sounded scary to me before.

"What do you do with your stand?" I said trying to return the kindness, but it only sounded like I was letting out a fart and trying to cover it up. She seemed unfazed though.

"I've been recruiting, you see. I just received a camp from my uncle. He used to teach children, younger than Hogwarts age, how to fly brooms in the summer. I used to help him out. But he had just passed away. It's quite sad. He fell in a river. Drowned, you see. So now I have a camp but obviously I can't run it myself. Uncle himself had employees but they died too, the Death Eaters got them. The war was so horrible. So I'm looking for people who want to be hired. Of course nobody has come over to me to ask. I saw other vendors calling people over but I didn't want to be too pushy. No one has even visited me." She said after our tea was sat down.

Something about the way she talked made me want to laugh. Her voice was high pitched and friendly. Then it hit me. A camp? Teaching people to fly? It would be like teaching Abby but ten times better. Elation filled me. Maybe she could- but my thoughts were cut off by the woman's voice. "I have already forgotten your name. What was it?"

"I hadn't told you it yet. I'm Brooke Flintwood. What's your name?" I asked her.

"Amelia, you see. I don't want to tell you my last name though. Some people make assumptions about us Lovegood's, you see. Aw nuts." She said dreamily and I gaped. The Lovegood's? As in Xenophilius, the new owner of The Quibbler? As in Luna Lovegood, fearless leader in Dumbledore's Army? My mouth opened in an 'O'. But I admit she did seem kind of wacky. "Luna's only my second cousin, you see. We look nothing alike. She is much prettier." She sipped her tea.

"Your pretty!" I jumped to say. It was true after all. She had dirty blonde hair and dark brown eyes. Why would she put herself down like that?

"I wasn't fishing for a compliment, I was just saying that Luna is very pretty." She stated. I finished my tea, as did Amelia but still we sat in silence. "We are going to be good friends I can tell," She said and I couldn't help but smile. "I'll go over to the booth and get you the papers. I know you want to help me with the camp and it would be good to have a friend working with me." She smiled a friendly smile. Her whole face lit up with she smiled, like a candle in a dark room.

"I didn't mention any-" I started to say but stopped. She must have read my mind or something. I would never doubt a Lovegood, I knew. She did seem oddly familiar to me though. Maybe she was a physic? I glanced at the clock; it was already past 12. "You can come over to my house tonight for dinner and you can tell me then. I have to get going soon though. I'm expected for lunch." Amelia accepted easily and I gave her my address reminding her it was in a muggle neighborhood so as to act inconspicuous.

"Goodbye friend," I heard Amelia say as I disapparated.

I bounded through the house to find Stan. He was in the bedroom trying to fold laundry with magic. I stayed by the door and stayed silent to watch him for just a few more seconds. He was cursing a lot and he seemed to be avoiding any of my bras and panties, he accidentally touched a frilly pair and took his hand away in a jerk. The clothes he did manage to fold were actually pretty decent.

"Hey," I said and he jumped half a mile back with a guilty look in his eye.

"I didn't touch them!" He said defensively with his hands up. I laughed and sat down on the bed.

"I made a friend!" I said excitedly. Stan smiled genuine this time.

"That's great! You should invite her to dinner." He began folding again and I helped him. He didn't have to kill himself over his hand brushing my delicates now.

"I did. Tonight. Hope that's ok," I said sheepishly. What if we went to Mum's for dinner? Personally I just wanted to brag to Amelia that I had the greatest house in the whole world. No one else except Mum, Abby and Mother had been over.

"That's great. We'd better get going though. You're Mother will be expecting us," He said and he moved aside so we could dissaparate.

"Um… one more thing," I felt guilty to tell him my plan.

Of course since Amelia told me about her camp I had been excited. A real job! I knew it was only in the summer but I bet they had work all year round, right? I would quit Bill's Steaks in a second just to be able to have that job. I couldn't help but think the flexible schedule would be good when we had kids- Oh Merlin, did I just think that? Stan stayed silent while my eyebrows furrowed over and over again. I could suddenly sense his anxiousness.

"It's not something bad!"I said and I could tell Stan's mind was going through thousands of scenarios. "Amelia, my friend," Saying that word gave me a tingle, "She own a camp and during the summer kids come and learn how to fly brooms and she kind of, not really, offered me a job there so I was-" But I was cut off by Stan.

"Brilliant! You need to take it! Merlin! You need to get this job! Just think of how happy you'll be doing something you love. You're always so good with kids and you were great with Abby." He hugged me and I fell into his embrace. I looked over Stan's shoulder as he pulled me closer. The clock read 1.

"We are so late," I mumbled into his ears.

"I don't care," He whispered as he pushed his lips against mine.

I ran around the house as I saw Amelia come up the steps to the front porch. It wasn't well furnished; what if she thought it was ugly? What if she didn't like the food I made? I spent hours on it. It was roast beef, corn and home made mashed potatoes. The doorbell rang and I jumped even though I had been expecting it.

"Please answer the door," I said hurriedly. Stan slowly got up from the couch and went to open the door. I shivered. This was the first time I had played hostess. With Hunter we never had company, over a year together and no one came over. I smoothed the tablecloth and started cutting the roast beef. This would be the first time eating on the new kitchen table. Stan's voice came from around the bend and I hurriedly washed my hands.

"Brooke!" I heard Amelia scream in her dreamy voice. Before I could even turn around I was wrapped in a huge hug. I couldn't help but laugh and Stan turned away awkwardly.

"Um hi," I said to Amelia who had just released me.

"I was so confused. I thought I had gotten the wrong house when the tall man answered the door but he say that he's your boyfriend. I thought at first he must surely be a drug dealer or a murderer and he would kill me. He might have just been saying that he was your boyfriend, you see. So I said in the scariest voice I could manage and I said, 'Really. Then what store did Brooke go into when she was at Diagon Alley?' I knew of course. So your boyfriend answers 'The Junk Shop, looking for a coffee table.' But of course I'm still suspicious so I kept questioning him until I saw you. Are you sure he's not keeping you prisoner?" She said happily and took a place at the kitchen table. I laughed but Stan just looked uneasy.

"I'm hope not. I don't think I am a prisoner. Stan is not keeping me captive if that's what you mean," I said giggling but the same expression remained on Amelia's face.

"But if you rearrange all of those in a random order then it says 'I am captive. Stan is keeping me prisoner,'" Amelia said unimpressed. I laughed again but Stan looked shocked.

"Come here, Stan." I said to him and he came over rather unwillingly. I put a quick yet passionate peck on his lips. Stan brightened up immediately but turned red.

"Brooke!" he said appalled. Amelia laughed.

"I was joking. I do that sometimes, you know," Amelia said and we all burst out into laughter. I put the food out and it was surprisingly good. Amelia and Stan both complimented me over and over and I couldn't help but blush.

"Amelia, what about you. Do you have a boyfriend?" I asked her. She swallowed her food and spoke.

"I'm already married. Newly wed, you see." She said and I gaped at her. She just seemed so… single. If anything I would have thought she would only have a boyfriend. Already married, wow. Stan seemed to be thinking along the same lines.

"Tell me about him," I said eagerly.

"He's really nice. I didn't go to Hogwarts, you know. I was home schooled. I didn't have many…any friends. So when I turned 17, I was so lonely. I was helping out with my uncle at the camp and along comes Paul. Paul was real nice to everyone and the kids; he worked there in the summer with me. He worked there two years before he even talked to me. So one day, a few years later, I am about to go to sleep and I hear a knock on my door and there is Paul. He was kneeling down on one knee. Of course we had only talked a few times before but we knew it was meant to be. We were only married a few weeks ago. We had been engaged long time and then we finally had a nice little ceremony. My uncle died a few days afterward. It was quite sad," She said and took a sip of my homemade lemonade. She said this dreamily.

"You'd only talked a few times before he proposed?" I gaped. I thought that kind of thing had passed. Didn't that only happen in the olden days?

"Yes, but we were engaged for almost three years. We had tons of time then. We are best friends now. Now that we're married it's ten times better because every night we get to have hot-"

"Whoa!" Stan and I both said trying to stop her.

"-Chocolate together during the middle of the night. Sometimes we both can't sleep. What?" Amelia asked as Stan and I broke out into a fit of giggles. Only when I had passed out dessert did we talk about the job.

"How much will I be paid if I work there?" I asked her shyly. Amelia however seemed unfazed by the question.

"You see, we don't only work in the summer. We have to recruit throughout the year and do seminars so you will be paid monthly. It's approximately 6000 galleons a year." She said simply. 6000 galleons! I couldn't believe it. I made half of that at Bill's Steaks. I was so quitting tonight.

"What's the work schedule?" I asked and watched as Stan got a brain freeze. His face twisted up and he sucked in his breath. "Put your thumb to the top of your mouth," I told him and he obeyed. Within seconds his pained expression faded away.

"You would work all summer you know. It's a day camp so it's from 9 to 4 from Monday to Friday. There aren't any real restrictions. You just need to be educated. Are you a sex offender?" She asked me. I stifled a laugh.

"No, I am not a sex offender." I said while failing to keep a straight face.

"So do you want the job?" She said and scooped up the rest of her ice cream.

"Yes. Merlin yes."

Quitting was easy. I walked through Bill's Steaks, not in uniform of course, stalked up to Bill and simply said 'I quit'. I was expecting a plea of some sort but none came. In fact Bill even went, as far as to insult me but I was too euphoric to take much notice.

"You weren't really that good of a waitress, kid," He told me. The jerk. But what did it matter now? I was on top of the world. I was living with my boyfriend, I got a new job I was bound to love and I was getting paid loads to do it. Everything I'd ever wanted came true.


	17. The Next Step

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter sadly.

A/N: Sorry this one's short! Please review!

* * *

Sex lurked around every corner now. As rain confined Stan and I to stay in the condo, we had little to do. So in our boredom we snogged. We snogged hard.

No longer was I embarrassed when Stan's hands cupped unfamiliar places. In fact, I enjoyed it; I couldn't get enough of it. We began making out at anytime of day. When we woke up and our breath smelled like sleep. When I was making dinner and Stan was leaving out the door for work. Once when I had just came out of the bathroom.

Then one day it just happened. We were lying down making out when my struggling hands finally were able to pull Stan's shirt off. I had never done anything like it before. Going as far as to take an article of Stan's clothes off was unheard of and Stan stared at me in shock. It was always Stan who was known to have to do the feeling.

It escaladed from there, a snowball effect and before I knew what was happening we were both naked. Taking Stan's shirt was apparently a RVSP for sex. We were on our new mattress and I couldn't but think of how I would have to clean the sheets the next day.

Of course, I hadn't been surprised that this had all happened. For weeks I had been mentally begging Stan to go further than usual, too embarrassed to actually ask. Then Stan was grabbing at the nightstand where he had secretly stashed his condoms.

It was amazing, the sex that is, not the fact that he had hid condoms from me for 2 months. It wasn't awkward this time at all. We both knew what we were doing and did we do it. The night hid our fears and insincerity. I suddenly regretted not doing anything before. Think of all the times I was bored when I could have been thoroughly entertained by Stan.

This time I didn't push away and forbid Stan to ever speak to me again like I had the time before, instead I pulled him closer. Eventually the next day we had to begrudgingly get dressed for dinner at my mother's though. We took our slow time getting ready. Let's just say, I had never been more grateful for April showers.

My friendship with Amelia grew. We now visited each other most everyday. Our personalities under different circumstances would have clashed but it just worked between the two of us. She was the sister I never had. Being an only child had left me with some qualities that were to be desired but being with Amelia was like reliving ages 2 through 8.

One day in the middle of April, just after Easter holidays were over, Amelia invited Stan and I to have dinner with her and her husband. I was pretty dang excited too. Amelia rarely talked about Paul, her new husband. When she did, it wasn't to complain about their sex life, instead she only told me how compatible they were.

"Yesterday Paul and I planted new flowers in our garden. We both love the way magnolia trees smell, you see. He is so nice. He brought me a magnolia bouquet today." She would say with unnaturally dreamy eyes. She didn't have to interpret what Paul did, or think about what to say to him, she was just so in love.

I on the other hand was the exact opposite. I did gush… the difference was that I talked about Stan constantly. Sometimes I even annoyed myself with how many times I said his name in one conversation.

"…Then he tried to make supper! It tasted horrible but it's the thought right? Since he made me dinner do you think that maybe that means he wants to marry me?" I would ask her and squeal. She would always just shrug her shoulders when I asked her these questions because she knew whatever she would say I would daydream the opposite.

She had once tried to give me her advice ("I don't think that because he made you tea he would want to have 5 children") and I had become mad and hadn't talked to her for two days. Those days were unbearably boring.

Men weren't the only things we talked about. We spent so much time discussing things for the summer camp (the name I found out was Fly to the Sky) that I actually felt that I deserved the 6000 galleons a year. We had to edit and revise every single chart; we had to go over medical documents. May 1rst was the deadline to sign up for the camp though and we only had 20 applicants. Amelia though seemed unfazed.

"Even if we had no students for the next ten years we would be able to afford it. Uncle was rich you know. He drowned, you see. It was quite sad." She would say when I would begin talking about expenses. Because of stress my face was more broken out then ever. Stan however seemed not to notice my pimply forehead and took every spare second we had alone to snog the daylights out of me, not that I didn't enjoy it.

Getting ready for the dinner, I slipped on my cocktail dress as Stan did the buttons up on his shirt. No longer did I feel embarrassed to watch Stan get dressed, only turned on. I could remember the night before when I had traced every single one his scars with my lips… after snapping out of my daydream, I went over to fix his tie and he graciously accepted the help.

"I love you," He growled in my ear and started pulling me closer into him. I slapped him away.

"We're supposed to be there in 30 minutes," I reprimanded him yet still he pulled me closer.

We apparated to Amelia's house a 35 minutes later, Stan with a cocky grin and I was sure my hair was matted up in the back. Amelia opened the door as we reached the front step. A wary look was placed on her face and it looked so unusual. I had been to Amelia's house only once before and even now as I looked up to the vast beauty of it. Like Mum's house trees surrounded it with no neighbors in sight. Instead of it being the tall trees that had been growing for hundreds of years, the yard was littered with little stumps. I also spotted a small garden out in the front with small magnolias. I sighed as I looked up to the house. It was quaint and small with red bricks and a big chimney. It seemed to have such a small house surrounded by so much land. Still it had 4 bedrooms and it seemed endless as we entered.

I peered around in the different rooms trying to get a glimpse of the infamous Paul. I could feel the excitement that Stan felt too. The possibility of having a close friend was exciting for him. Stan had always been the first one to talk to people, but sadly he always left an awful first impression. I could only imagine how he survived without me all those years. It wasn't really a surprise to find him under the Imperius Curse. I can only imagine the Death Eater he had accidentally insulted. We entered the dining room and I surprised to find the table barren. I looked over to Amelia and an out of blush crept to her face.

"He's just washing up. He's very shy you know," She said apologizing. She slipped into a different room and Stan and I sat in awkward silence.

"I'm nervous," I mouthed and Stan chuckled quietly. I could smell the obvious smell of rotisserie chicken. My mouth watered. Amelia reentered but this time she wasn't alone. At her side was a tall man. My mouth formed in an 'o'. I swore I was staring at a replicate of Al, 20 some years younger. Even Stan was shocked by the resemblance. A head full of thick black hair and even the beginning of a beard were placed on Paul's broad chin. He looked like a Paul Bunyan in the making. But I could see why Amelia liked him. His broad shoulders dipped into his heavy muscled arms. His polo shirt seemed to stretch across his abs.

Stan coughed after realizing what I had been staring at. I smiled back him reassuringly. Paul did seem shy as Amelia described him, refusing to meet anyone's eyes but he had such a kind look about him.

"I'm Paul," He said mumbling to a spot on the floor. I could see now why it took him five years to propose. Amelia was obviously embarrassed by her husband's behavior and blushed again. She patted his arm in encouragement.

"I'm Stan," Stan said getting up to shake Paul's hand. Paul awkwardly grabbed Stan's hand and gave it a gruff shake.

"You must be Brooke. Amelia talks an awful lot about you," Paul said turning to me. His voice was rough like he hadn't talked in a while but there was no mistaking the sincerity. Amelia gave her husband a dreamy look and headed off to the kitchen, accepting that things would be all right. The three of us sat down quietly and I begged someone to talk. The silence was deafening. Stan cleared his throat and I knew he was thinking the same thing. Paul though seemed to think the silence was grand as he smiled to himself.

"So, Paul, um… how'd you begin to work at the camp?" I started awkwardly and Paul jumped as if coming out of a trance. He looked around to see me staring at him before he answered.

"I just sort of fell into it, I was working at Flourish and Blott's when Amelia's uncle comes in and just offers me a job. I'm so glad I took it," He said softly and Amelia reentered carrying two plates, she set them down in front of Stan and I and smiled at her husband before returning to the kitchen. The worried look melted off of her face. "Just think, if I hadn't been working that day or if I hadn't accepted I wouldn't be here married to the most wonderful woman in the whole world," He said as he stared at the door where Amelia disappeared. I beamed at him in approval. They were so adorable together. He couldn't take his eyes off of his little wife and I sighed in jealously. Stan just looked like he was going to be sick.

"I heard from Brooke that you have 3 siblings, Paul. I have 3 as well." Stan said trying to make pleasant conversation. It was so cute when he tried hard. I could tell he was nervous and Paul's shyness just made it another obstacle that he had to overcome.

"Yes," Paul said simply as Amelia reappeared laying down plates from the two of them.

Once Amelia had returned Paul seemed much more at ease. He talked freely and I even saw him laugh at a joke Stan had made. Stan was so surprised to hear Paul laugh that he spent the rest of the night trying to do it again. I was surprised how well the two men got a long. Like Amelia's and my friendship, it was a little unconventional but it just seemed to work together. I was already daydreaming of double dates we could go on together when Amelia brought in ice cream.

Every now and again I would see the gazes that Paul and Amelia shared and I had to turn away. They looked at each other so intimately. I felt as if I'd walked in on them. Did Stan and I look at each other like that? I tried to picture my face as I talked about him. I couldn't remember it going all dreamy the way Amelia's did, but maybe ours was just different. Right? I felt the doubt creep up to me and I tried to push away the feeling. Were Stan and I not lovey enough? No, it couldn't be, it was just because Amelia was a Lovegood that made her face look like that. I began to try and slacken my face as I looked over at Stan, imitating Amelia's expression.

"Do you need to go to the bathroom or something?" Stan said and I stared in shock. Probably because of my lack of talking the dinner was soon over. I apparated away, not bothering to wait for Stan. The jerk! Why didn't he look at me like Paul did to Amelia? I landed outside of our door and opened it. I slammed it right in to Stan face as he appeared just inches away. I immediately reprimanded myself. It's not Stan's fault I was mad at him, was it? Stan opened the door as I stared guiltily at it.

"What was that for?" He said annoyed. He shrugged off his light jacket. "You know what, never mind. Merlin, I am so tired." He flopped on the couch like a fish out of water. "Brooke, aren't you so glad that I made a friend? Me and Paul are going bowling next week, he says he's always wanted to try it." He grinned at me. My heart beat quickly and I turned to the mirror hanging on the wall. My face was the same stony expression it had been before.

"Great," I said sulkily. I walked nearer to the couch and sat down next to Stan. He immediately wrapped me in a hug and pulled close to him, oblivious to my discomfort.

"I am so glad we don't act like that though, Brooke," He said kissing the top of my forehead. I gaped at him. Glad that we don't act in love? He had to be kidding. "I mean, I love you with my whole heart Brooke, but how annoying would it be make those eyes at you all the time. Mum says I do you know. Last time we went over for lunch she kept me back and said if I kept looking at you like that you'd be pregnant by the end of the year," He roared with laughter and I said nothing. He had better not be done. "Brooke, we are perfect for each other and we know it. They're newlyweds so the novelty hasn't worn of yet. We act just like them when we're alone, you just don't see it. Whenever you talk to me your eyes light up, I see it. And whenever I kiss you my heart beats twice the normal time. Don't think that because we don't act like teenagers we don't love each other. To tell you the truth I think that Paul and Amelia have only ever dated one another. We are so tainted," He said jokingly and I managed a weak smile. He knew what I'd wanted him to say

"Do you ever think we'll be like them?" I asked him warily.

"I hope so, when we get married and we can't take our eyes of each other even just for a second. We do the same thing now, Brooke, it's just lesser," He kissed the top of my head. I felt my face flame, so much in fact that I'm pretty sure that even Stan could feel it. Should I push it? I was so curious it hurt.

"M-married?" I choked out. Of course every time I looked at Stan I thought marriage but I didn't know Stan felt the same way. My hope had uplifted by light-years, I could already hear wedding bells.

"When we're ready," He whispered and moved himself so that he was hovering on the couch. He was already kissing my neck by the time I had comprehended what he said. He planned to marry me! Merlin!

"Talking about this turns you on, huh?" I said and my voice croaked. The joke was lame but Stan smiled as he worked his way to my buttons.

"Sure does."


	18. Weddings and Babies

Disclaimer: Not mine

A/N: Only 3 chapters left. Can you believe that? I loved writing this chapter. It was fun fun fun. Please review. I'd really appreciate it. Thank you! Hope you enjoy.

I shifted uncomfortably as we entered the Madame Malkin's. The near summer heat was suddenly diminished as we entered the air-conditioned robe shop. The last week had been hectic, filled with wedding preparations and today we were looking for a perfect white dress robe for the bride. I hated this.

It was June 8th, exactly seven days since Maddie had come home with the news. I had always thought Nick was a nice kid but now I hated him as much as I hated lima beans. Stan's 17-year-old sister was getting married before me. Why did they even want to get married now? They were both young, and they've just been engaged why did the wedding have to be exactly 3 weeks from now? How the hell did Nick afford such a big ass diamond?

I have always been a patient person, but I was sick of it. I wanted to be married, NOW DAMMINT! Maddie had giggled like an idiot flashing her stupid ring all over the place. She had told us the second after she got off the bus, not even bothering to give us time to gather the thoughts of her arrival. Stan, who I expected to sulk and punch Nick, had accepted his future brother in law with a hug and a smile. Bastard.

Maddie oohed and aawed at every robe we passed as we went row by row deeper

into the shop. Why anyone would want to have a magical wedding was beyond me. Her dad's family couldn't come, being the muggles they were, so why go to all the trouble?

Maddie had grown more mature since I last saw her at Christmas, she went to her dad's for Easter, and she looked so much prettier. She was absolutely glowing with love for Nick. It made me want to vomit. Stan's sister couldn't stop smiling and neither could her betrothed. I on the other hand spent the last week moping and sulking refusing to even talk to Stan. I was 27 and still unmarried. I only had 3 years left until I was 30. I sighed as Maddie went to try on the robes. Mum had been too happy for her blood daughter to pay attention to my own internal crisis and Amelia had gone with Paul to visit her parents, so I was left to handle my own problems. My diary was even no solitude for me and so I cried in the shower and was moodier than usual.

Maybe I was pregnant I thought joyfully the day before. Mother Nature thought it would be funny by letting me ride the cotton pony this week instead. Freaking hilarious. Maddie came out of the dressing room with that stupid smile on her face and a pretty embellished white robe.

"I like that one," I said trying to be pleasant but only sounding sarcastic.

"Oh I don't know," Maddie said twirling in front of the mirror. I tried to hide my grimace. What did it matter what she wore if she was so beautiful anyway? If I ever got married I would have to wear pounds of make up and an elegant dress to distract from my pure ugliness. Where was chocolate when I needed it?

Mum also nodded in approval but Maddie went to try on some more dresses. In the end we spent 3 hours picking out a dress at Madame Malkin's only to have Maddie go to the first dress we had picked out for her. We apparated to Mum's house as the sun set. The sky glowed with pink as we entered the house. We went to the kitchen and found all 3 of the boys drinking butterbeers to fight the heat.

Nick and Stan were laughing at some joke while Abby and Tyler were playing gob stones. I missed Abby, very rarely did we see each other now and I knew she was bored out of her mind. I was in a way grateful to Maddie for having this wedding and bring Stan's family together again. Abby caught sight of me and gave me a hug. I smiled at her. Over the past months she had grown considerably, she was now to my bellybutton and she seemed to be getting plumper. Tyler seemed like me, to be sulking.

"Hey," I said to him grabbing a butterbeer and sitting next to him.

"Hey, don't you just hate all this wedding stuff?" He said taking a swig from his butter beer. I nodded my head so fast I'm surprised I didn't get whiplash. "I knew you wouldn't like it either. You and me are like peas in a pod." He said clenching the bottle and turning to me. I heard Nick's guffaw from across the room but decided to ignore him.

"It's good your sister's getting married though, don't you think? Even if you don't like the preparations," I said and felt guilty about the way I had been treating Maddie suddenly. I wasn't as bad as Tyler I hoped, yet I really doubted it. I hadn't even congratulated her.

"I guess, but once Maddie leaves then I won't get to see her as much," He said softly and I let out an audible 'aaaw'.

"Just because your sister isn't here doesn't mean she doesn't love you, Tyler." I looked over at him with a small smile. He was angry because he would miss his sister. Aww.

"I know. I know. But I won't get to see her as much is all," He looked so vulnerable as he said this and I could tell he was beginning to get embarrassed. Before he had the chance to move away I wrapped him in a big hug. He gasped and let his hands hang limply at his sides as I hugged him tight. After a while, I pulled away and sat down quickly. Tyler's face was beat red and he looked like was in shock. He was so cute.

"Hey you gu-" Stan said coming over to us. Tyler jumped out of his chair and stared at his brother him in horror.

"She hugged me, I swear!" Tyler said and I couldn't help but giggle forgetting about ignoring Stan. Tyler however seemed deeply offended. "I'm so going to get you back for this," He said and disappeared into his room. Stan and I roared with laughter. I stopped abruptly when I remembered I was supposed to be grumpy. Stan stopped with me and we stared out of the kitchen window to watch Nick, Maddie and Mum mentally prepare where everything would go.

"Are you mad at Maddie?" He asked me quietly. I sighed, if anything Maddie was the person I was least mad at.

"No, just at myself," I told him truthfully we stated outside at the setting sun and I then and there swore to myself that I would stop being such a mean person. I should focus on other peoples happiness rather than my own. But, damn, I still wanted to be married first.

The weeks slipped by with one wedding preparation after the next. Thursday was when we got the flowers, Friday the cake. On the Monday before the Sunday wedding, Amelia returned with an armload of presents.

"I guess I couldn't stop thinking about you everywhere I went so I bought you a present for most of the stores we went to," She said as I examined the loaf of white bread she had just given me. I laughed and hugged her tight. I had missed Amelia deeply for the past two weeks. I spent a whole girl's lunch informing her on everything that happened. She even gasped at the appropriate times. I knew I missed her for a reason.

"So that's why I've tried to be pleasant and helpful this past week even though I'm insanely jealous," I finished up and took my first bite of my food even though it had been sitting there for 20 minutes. She just smiled at me. Why was she smiling at me?

"That's splendid," She said smiling.

"Splendid? I just told you that I am having an emotional war within myself and yet you think it's splendid?" I said in shock. I thought she was on my side! She seemed to agree with me when I told the story.

"Well, I've got new too, you see. Paul and I are trying for a baby," She said excitedly and the bit of sandwich I was eating fell out of my mouth. A baby?

"Like…you're pregnant?" I asked her in shock as jealously raged within me.

"Well, not yet, but hopefully soon," She said and smiled at me. "You see, I've always loved children." She smiled her radiant smile.

"You guys have only been married for a few months, are you sure you want kids already?" I said doubtful. I knew first hand how having a kid led to the downfall of my parent's marriage. I would want to wait at least a year before I had kids. I sighed, that is if I ever got married. It would probably take a year and a half to plan the wedding, a year after being married, and 9th months for being pregnant. Even if Stan proposed today I wouldn't have kids until I was 30.

"Yes well, yesterday was our 5th month anniversary of being married, so even if I got pregnant now I wouldn't have the baby until after our year anniversary. It works out good." She said surprisingly calm. I wouldn't have thought that Amelia would get a little zany about things like this but she was composed. I couldn't help but notice the dreamy look in her eyes.

"Aw," I said and finally it hit me. If Amelia had kids now, I would forever be able to be known as 'Auntie Brooke.' I giggled at the name and we had already picked out several names for the nonexistent baby when we really should have been concerned about the summer camp opening in two weeks. I reached the house and found a note from Stan saying he was at work. Stan, oh Stan, I thought in my mind. I tried to mentally tell him to propose to me. I knew it wasn't going to work though. He had been so tired lately and we had hardly seen each other. I wondered what we would name out kids. Stan Junior? I laughed out loud and walked to the bedroom to take a nap.

I arrived to the Shunpike's house on the day of the wedding and found it how I had expected, pandemonium. Stan, who standing next to me, immediately took off to the backyard to help with setting things up. I walked down the hall to Maddie's room and I found her surrounded by her sister and mother all crowding around closer to her. I hung up my dress and looked over at her, expecting some last minute crisis but instead I found her smiling and laughing to her mother and sister. She didn't look nervous at all and had no cold feet. In fact I saw some rather fuzzy socks around her small ankles. Her white dress robes flattered her well, her pale skin looked radiant against it when she saw me looking at her she smiled at me.

"You're gorgeous," I said and gave her a weak smile. I felt like crying all of a sudden.

"Mum, Abby, I need to talk to Brooke alone please. Out! Out!" She said smiling and pushing her family out of the room. She leaned against the door and smiled at me. "I thought they'd never leave." She said and smiled. I don't really know what happened but somehow Maddie had collapsed on the floor. She began heaving big sobs as I stared on in shock. Her makeup!

"They haven't put the makeup on yet," She reassured me when she'd recovered just as I had awkwardly started to pat her back. I just stared at her. She was so calm. What had happened? "You must think I'm crazy but Brooke, I don't have any friends and I just don't know who to tell. I'm so scared that we're doing the wrong thing," She said searching my eyes. It felt so weird to be asked love advice when really I relied on Amelia before I made any decisions.

"Well, you love each other so of course you're doing the right thing even though you may seem a little young. You two really are cute together." I said as truthfully as I could as Maddie broke into another sob.

"We do… We are in love! Really we are but we were going to wait a few more years to get married, I wanted to be a writer first. I wanted to focus on my career. But Brooke, I'm pregnant. We just found out two months ago. Nick was so good really he was. He immediately proposed and I said no at first but then I changed my mind and here we are. I just want to know if I'm doing the right thing," She said and started sobbing again. I stared at her mollified. Stan's perfect little sister was pregnant.

"I thought you were waiting…" I said trying to keep my voice light so as not to make her cry any harder.

"We were but…you know how it is. It just happened, and I brewed up a potion to take but I guess it didn't work." She said and looked at me again as if I had all the answers.

"Well," I started unsure of how to proceed. What if I was in Maddie's shoes? "You do love each other don't you? You were going to get married anyway and now it's just a little earlier than you planned. You can still be a journalist. It's good you're doing this. It is Maddie. You didn't say yes just because of the baby did you? You said yes because you want to be with Nick for the rest of your life, right?" I asked her. She nodded slowly and looked at me for an answer. "You do!" I told her and she nodded faster now.

"I do love Nick. It doesn't matter that we're young. We'll make it work! Yeah!" She said standing up suddenly confident and wiping the tears from her eyes.

"Does you mum know about the circumstances?" I asked her. Mum would have to know, she must have. Did Stan?

"I haven't told her but she knows. I just need to make an announcement after a month or so." She said shrugging. Mum must have told Stan and that's why Stan and Nick got along so well, because they had to. Of course. Mum and Abby reentered the room soon after and seemed unfazed by Maddie's red puffy eyes. Mum delicately put makeup on her daughters and began to cry silent tears.

"My baby's getting married. Oh Maddie. Your leaving me so soon and starting your own family," She said as she put down the lip stain she had just used on me. Ok, so Mum definitely knew. Abby hugged her Mum and she calmed down considerably. I took Abby's hand and we walked down stairs together to the backyard and I took my place beside Stan while Abby received her basket of roses. I looked over the small crowd congregated where Abby's snow people once stood. At the end of the long aisle was a small gazebo where the minister stood. The white chairs looked beautiful and the natural wildflowers perfected the whole look.

"I hope my wedding is this beautiful," I said before I could stop myself.

"I promise it will be," Stan said after a pause. He leaned to over to me and gave me a kiss on the cheek. I would have deepened the kiss had the cue for us to leave had not been right then.

From where I stood as Maddie's Maid of Honor, I could see Al and his family and I couldn't wait for the reception to talk to him. I could see Amelia and Paul whom I'd invited last minute. I saw Stan's father standing off to the side surprisingly and a couple I suspected to be Nick's parents. The ceremony was beautiful and the priest did wonders with words. I was sobbing softly when he pronounced the two "bounded for life". Maddie who had been an emotional wreck earlier had not shed one tear and kissed her new husband with a smile on her face. I caught Stan's eye from where he stood as Nick's best man. He gave a wink and a smile that I quickly returned.

The reception was beautiful. We had held it inside of the house, the furniture turning into white chairs outside and wildflowers hung everywhere. There was a small cake but because of the small attendance only lasted a few hours. Al and I had a great talk about the Minister of Magic's new laws for equality in the Wizarding world. He was so funny. Although we didn't fully agree on politics we never seemed to keep smiles off of our faces. After getting out of the bathroom I walked up to Al again and tapped his shoulder. He turned around and I realized I hadn't tapped Al at all but Paul. Paul blushed a deep scarlet when he realized I had made a mistake.

"That uncle of Stan's is pretty cute, I think," Amelia told me later and I couldn't help but laugh. Stan and I, instead of being separated like I thought we would be, were stuck together for most of the reception. We answered for each other and I was suddenly conscious of his hand on my lower back. After not having sex for 3 weeks I really just wanted to go upstairs and rip his clothes off.

When finally Nick's parents, the last to the leave, had apparated away, I realized that Nick and Maddie were nowhere in sight.

"Where are they?" I asked Stan in confusion.

"When you were in the bathroom they ditched, they're probably in the middle of having a sex romp in their new house. I can't believe I even thought about that," Stan said and shuddered. The thought was a little disgusting to me too. "She's pregnant," Stan said softly.

"I know," I whispered back looking over at Mum who was picking up after her nonexistent guests. "Did Mum tell you?" Tyler and Abby had disappeared outside for a game of quidditch and I watched them from the kitchen window,

"No, I just knew. The second she got off the bus. She had never looked that happy. The way they rushed the wedding too, I figured it out. I'm not that oblivious you know," He said and I could tell he was proud of himself. "I felt like I was on GSI." I laughed.

"It's CSI, darling. Now how about we blow this joint and go back to our place so I can ravish your body?" I said as delicately as I could so Mum couldn't over hear. Stan nodded and we disapparrated before Mum could even know we were gone.

The next morning, 3:12 to be exact, I knew things were back to normal. No longer would we have to pick out seating arrangements. It would just be Stan and I. I shuddered and pulled him closer to me. He obliged and kissed my temple.

"I love you." I whispered and ran my fingers through his hair.

"I love you forever and ever," He said and twisted his head down to kiss my collarbone. Merlin, if he loved me that much why didn't he just marry me? Merlin! "I'm just waiting for the ring," I heard Stan say. Wait, what the hell was he talking about? Did I say that out loud? "You're really out of it when you're sleepy." He said and I blushed a deep red. I had said that out loud, hadn't I? "Yes, you did," Stan said and laughed. We fell asleep again in each other's arms with the promise of tomorrow on our lips.


	19. First Day

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter

A/N: We're so close to the end of the story! Please review. It's depressing how little reviews I get. But above all, please enjoy.

I arrived at the camp with only seconds to spare. Very rarely now did I get up early, and I had fallen asleep soon after getting up at 6 am, giving me only a few minutes to get ready. Amelia waited at the gate for me with an unusual frown.

Over the months I had known Amelia, the dreamy look I thought was permanent, now rarely appeared. She had a smile mostly across her mouth and the occasional frown; sometimes her lips formed a pursed line. Now her frown quickly turned to relief as she saw me. The summer camp I had only been to a few times stretched out behind her. A large wide gate separated us from muggles and past that was freshly mowed grass. One section was a miniature quidditch pitch while the other half was just plain grass. There were several tents pitched up around the field at random spots for what I knew to be for rest stops and instruction.

"You're here. Good." Amelia said rushing me into the camp and closing the gate door. Paul and a small meek balding man, who I had learned would help out with the children, met us. To me he just looked like a sex offender but Paul swore on his honor and I couldn't question his judgment. We only had a few seconds to discuss plans before I heard a pop and to my right, two people appeared. A mother I had never seen clutched the hand of a little boy.

"Hi, welcome to Fly to the-" Amelia started but the woman seemed to have not heard her.

"Charles, I'll pick you up at three. Be a good boy. Bye," The mother said hurriedly and apparated away before we could say anything more. The boy was young, maybe 6 or 7, with a worried look on his face as if to apologize for his mother.

"Sorry, she's deaf," He said and shook his head. He had a mature face that didn't match his undernourished frame. Almost immediately after he stopped talking some more pops were heard around us and people materialized. It reminded me of Hogwarts, we would all wait for someone else to turn in the paper first before we rushed to turn ours in. Eventually 8:30 came and we called roll.

"People last names A-F will be with Miss Flintwood," Amelia yelled through the bustling kids. It scared me how confident she was. I was shaking I was so nervous. 5 or so children came and gathered around. I called their names in a voice different from my own. The children however did not seem to notice my nervousness and talked to me quite casually as we waited for our turn to get fitted for brooms. A girl aged 10, named Dorothy, talked to me as if I was an old pal.

"I've been coming here since I was 7, I'm pretty good. But Mum says I still have to come back. She says I'm too lazy," Dorothy said proudly baring a used broomstick. The other four children were hushed into silence by Dorothy's outgoingness. Maybe they were as nervous as me, I thought joyfully.

The first day went quickly. The other children eventually warmed up to me. Alexis, an 8 year old with her front teeth missing, had a knack for flying. She was probably on the same level as Dorothy though this was her first year at the camp. Charles, thank Merlin, was in my group and remained as somber as he had before. I had a pair of twins, named Michael and Timothy, I couldn't tell the difference between the two but they were both barely passable.

The hour taken for lunch gave me a chance to speak with Amelia.

"They've already got the hang of it mostly. What do we do for the rest of the day?" I asked her worriedly. I hadn't planned out what we were going to do; I just thought I would go with the flow. Amelia swallowed the bite of sandwich she'd eaten.

"We have a quidditch match at the end of the camp, just train them for that," She said simply. Suddenly a memory came of Amelia telling me the same thing months ago. Duh. I hustled the children back to my area of the field and explained to them the rules of quidditch. For such a young group raging from ages 7 to 10, I thought that the children would be a lot more disruptive. But as I explained they sat quietly and patiently. Alexis even raised her hand when she had a question.

The only problem was the twins. They just couldn't sit still. Oh no, they didn't talk when I was speaking but the two of them paced up and down. It was as annoying as someone jiggling his or her knee next to you. I just wanted to take my hands and make them sit still. They weren't hurting anyone though and they were listening to what I had to say so I let them continue. When I was done explaining the children had no questions.

"I don't understand why we had to listen to you talk about that for half an hour. My father used to be a professional quidditch player. I think I would know," Dorothy scoffed and mounted her broom. Her pompous manner made me mentally giggle. I let loose the enchanted softballs that I had learned to control the week before and let them fly free.

"You all need to catch one softball and bring it back to me," I said simply. The feat was easily done as there were some 20 balls floating in the air. The children all caught one and were back to me within minutes. I smiled and took the balls from their hands placing them in the bag they came from as the other 15 balls floated around me.

"You all need to catch one softball and bring it back to me," I said again as my smile widened. The idea of this game had come to me in the spring and I had been so excited for someone to judge it ever since. I had tried it once with Abby as a trial run, but it was a bust with only the two of us. This time the children scrambled over the balls and it took Michael (or was it Timothy?) a full ten minutes to finally make his way back to me.

"You all need to catch one softball and bring it back to me," I repeated. I heard Dorothy groan and whisper to Alexis "Why are we doing this?" as she mounted her broom. Alexis beat out Dorothy this time as Dorothy looked on in shock. A shy smile played on Alexis's mouth as she handed me the softball. In Dorothy's shock, Charles caught a ball as well. Dorothy was next. It took the twins 10 minutes to grasp at the balls that flew in every direction. I repeated my instructions and the five of them went off to chase the remaining only five balls flew in the sky now and I watched as the helpless children began to speed after them.

"Alexis, you need to move your whole body when you lunge! Timot- I mean Michael, you need to scoot up a little more- there!" I said yelling words of advice from where I stood. The time was quickly coming to three. I had to think a few nonverbal spells to help the children out. Timothy almost fell off his broom when the softball flew into his hand. At 3 exactly the children's parents came to pick them. When at last Charles's mother had picked him up, Amelia and I shared an accomplished smile. If each day went like this I would be in heaven. Paul stared in shock as Amelia and I broke down in to giggles. I was happy and oh so confident. Just the look that the two of us shared was enough to make us laugh.

"I had a little boy named Richard. His father called him Dick when he was dropped off so I was called him that. He gave me a death glare and said 'Do you even know what that means?' like it was my fault. And Pamela had gotten a Cleansweep Seven for her birthday and she's only 6!" Amelia and I said over dinner that night trading stories. I waved goodbye to Paul and Amelia and apparated to my own lovely abode. I found Stan reading a book in the living room and I went and sat next to him. He smiled at me and slipped a bookmark into his book. I smiled back at him.

"How was your day?" He said and kissed my cheek. Just those four words reinforced my love for him. Very rarely was I ever asked this, never by Hunter or by my Mother.

"I love you," I told him instead of answering the question. I ignored my racing heartbeat and leaned in to deepen the kiss.

I woke up late two weeks after the camp opened on Saturday, enjoying missing the sunrise. Stan was sleeping soundly next to me. Instinctively he pulled me closer in his unconscious as I tried to get away. I sat up, which was hard to do since his arms were wrapped so tightly around me, and kissed his forehead.

"Wake up," I whispered. One part of me was sad to awake such a cute face while the other part just wanted Stan to hurry and wake up so we could talk and kiss. Stan stirred and blinked up at me and smiled. Just that smile made me want to kiss him. After the incident with Maddie's wedding and with my dad, I thought my relationship with Stan would have cooled off. Every time I looked at him now though, my heart seemed to skip two beats and I just want to kiss him. This urge was sometimes hard for me to restrain. The weekend before I had publicly kissed him in front of Mum without even realizing what I was doing. I didn't know if Stan felt the same way about me still, very rarely did he start any kiss, but I really didn't care. I just wanted him.

"Hey, tonight we're going out to eat. I hope that's all right. I already made reservations," he said smiling. I did a little dance to show him of my approval.

Stan and I hadn't been on a date in a while just the two of us, since having sex we stayed home most times. I would rather do that anyway. Of course we usually went out with Paul and Amelia once a week, but that hardly counted. Amelia and I were to busy having a laugh to take notice of our beaus. Stan and Paul now had a relationship that bordered on friendship. Stan tried so hard to gain the approval of Paul that it was close to obsession.

"Do you think Paul would like this?" He would ask me when we shopped for clothes. Sometime he could be so funny. The day went by quickly with the promise of the date on our lips. I suddenly remembered mid conversation with my Mother, that I had been promised to pick the next date. I had already used one of the promised dates for a trip to an amusement park. I ended up vomiting on the teacups. I looked at my mother and smiled warmly at her. She rarely had news, and mostly we talked about my life. I wondered if she was very lonely. She didn't have anyone and I only visited once or twice a week. Maybe I should buy her a goldfish.

"…But the then Brenda told him that he would have to find a new assistant and stormed out!" Mother said finishing her story. I gasped feigning interest to the story I had barely listened to. "Brooke, there's something else." She said quieter and my head popped up. Her voice was eerie and I wondered what bad news there was now. "I want to tell you now… I've got-" She said and paused. My mind immediately wandered to the words 'breast cancer'. Of course no one in our family had ever had it but still the possibility loomed over us. "- A boyfriend," Mother finished faltering. My face brightened up as relief washed over me. The prospect that my mother wasn't ill lifted my spirits immediately. Plus I wouldn't need to buy a goldfish now! Mother looked at me curiously.

"I thought you would react differently," Mother said in a normal tone now. I smiled at her again in approval. I told her how I was worried about her loneliness. Mother laughed. "Oh, Lionel had been taking real good care of me," She said. The way she said the word 'good' made me want to vomit.

I went over to Amelia's house after lunch and found her knitting in the living room. She had been working on a yellow afghan since she had started trying to get pregnant. It was the first thing she had ever knitted, her mother had never taught her. She spent weeks researching the technique before she finally perfected it. She took it everywhere with her, every lunch we spent gossiping over salads she would be working on a hook and loom. Paul was outside mowing the lawn.

"He likes mowing the lawn by hand, it gives him time to think," She had told me once. Now as Amelia sat in the recliner with a half finished afghan covering her legs I wondered what he had to think about. Hope sprang into my chest.

"Am I going to become a Auntie Brooke soon?" I asked my voice cracking. Amelia broke into a smile. She tossed the knitting aside and pulled me into a hug.

"We just found out this morning. I was going to go to house at dinner and tell you. I'm just so excited Brooke! I know I should be nervous but I'm so happy. Paul is just beaming. He says he wants a girl. We would name her after you, but we already decided for it to be after Paul's mother. Before forever you'll remain her Auntie Brooke," Amelia said grinning and rubbing her nonexistent tummy.

"Oh you already know it's a girl?" I asked her. She blushed and turned away.

"I don't know if it is actually a girl, but I just feel like it is, you see. Don't get me a wrong, I will love a boy just as much as a girl, but wouldn't it be nice to have a girl first?" Amelia asked me curiously. I suddenly felt sick for a home I could call my own. I should be the one announcing my pregnancy. I sighed. Amelia and I talked for hours. Which room would the baby get? Would she have Paul's eyes? Would he like quidditch? Paul came in later with a sweat stained back and a huge smile. I had never seen him so expressive with his emotions. He went up to his wife and kissed her and Amelia giggled like a schoolgirl. They were so adorable that tears came to my eyes. I was so jealous that bitter aftertaste came to my mouth.

I apparated home soon after that, trying not to harsh the mood. Stan was sitting on the sofa with a book in his hands again. Every time I would come home now, Stan always had a book with him. I imagined he was bored, having to wait for me all day. He had probably went over to Mum's and played with Tyler but I was too distracted to ask. I walked over to him and grinned.

"Amelia's pregnant!" I said happily and Stan smiled too, more weakly than I would have hoped. Why wasn't he shouting with joy and happiness like I had been? Why was he wearing khaki pants in the middle of the summer? I looked at the clock on the stove. It was 5. Suddenly I remembered about the date. "When's the reservation at?" I said smoothly and heading into the bedroom to the closet. Stan followed behind me.

"Six. I can't believe I'm going to be an uncle!" Stan said and I figured that the news had settled in. I laughed and picked out a red dress that Stan said he liked on me before.

"Your real sister is pregnant, yet you are more concerned about Amelia's child calling you uncle?" I laughed. I shooed him out of the room and began to change. Usually I didn't do this but I wanted to take away his breath away. But 5:45, I was showered, dressed with my hair curling lightly at my shoulders. Stan did actually gasp as I walked into the room. I hadn't worn my good underwear in vain.

"Brooke, you look beautiful," he said and I believed him. Instead of pushing away and laughing like I usually did when he said things like this, I was instead flattered. I blushed. Maybe, it hit me, in Stan's eyes I really was beautiful. Maybe Stan had made me beautiful. We arrived at a high class Italian restaurant I had only ever heard of at 5:55.

"Oh, we're splurging are we?" I said laughing as the waiter led us to our table.

"Only the best for my woman," Stan said jokingly. I hit his arm and began to look at the menu. Everything listed was over 20 dollars I looked guiltily over at Stan but he just smiled and nodded at me as if to say 'go ahead.' I looked over at him in the dimly lit restaurant and I suddenly just wanted to go to the women's room and eat him instead of the dinner. I wondered if the lights were that low for a reason. The conversation was light. Stan had a few nice story about some wizards he caught selling drugs on his bus, and we went into full detail discussing Amelia's pregnancy.

"Uncle Stan?" Stan implored with a curious look. I shook my head.

"Uncle Stanley sounds better, much more professional," I told him as I took a sip of my red wine.

"How will I know the kid's talking to me if he calls me Stanley? I don't respond to that. It's got to be Uncle Stan, right Aunt Brooke?" Stan said grinning.

"That's Aunty Brooke to you!" I said in mock anger. He smiled at me, the warmth reaching his eyes. When the check came I was the one who offered to pay. Since getting my monthly salary, I had wanted to pay for everything, though Stan, always the gentlemen, always refused to use my cash. He wouldn't even let me see the price. I suspected it to be pretty high though from the way Stan's eyes bugged out of his head at the sight of it. He let me pay for the tip after that.

"I'm am sooooo tired," I said leaning on Stan as we exited the restaurant. "You wanted to get me drunk so you could have your way with me, isn't that it?" I laughed and laid my head on Stan's shoulder. He smiled at me.

"Drunk on one glass of wine now are we?" Stan said laughing and I laughed along. I was on a love high and I wanted anything but for the night to be over. Stan grabbed my hand and I was pushed into nonexistence as we apparated away. Instead of arriving at the skinny condo I had called home for the past few months, we arrived at the park. We were at The Park, the park where everything had happened. The park where we first met, the park where we exchanged our I love you's, the park of memories. Suddenly I realized. Tears pricked to my eyes, as I knew what was happening. It all made sense, the restaurant the way Stan had dressed. He smiled sheepishly. "I wanted to do it somewhere memorable," He said. He put one shaky knee down in the grass and looked hopefully up at me. At that moment I didn't think about the stain the grass would leave in the khaki pants, or that there were several families staring at us in shock. I was only aware of Stan's eyes locked on mine. Instead of being nervous like he usually was about anything serious, his gaze was unwavering. Even though he didn't say it, I knew he had to do this, it was all leading up to this, everything. That first time we met on the Knight Bus, when we were reunited, when I moved in, it all led up to this moment right here. It took all of my strength not to jump into his arms before he finished what he needed to say. I felt tears well up in my eyes as Stan fumbled around in his pocket and pulled out a satin covered box. I fingered the necklace he had given me seven months ago. I had never taken in off just like I promised I wouldn't.

"Brooke, will you marry me?" He said in a confident voice. He wasn't cocky or pompous; he was just sure of our love. As he said the word 'me', I launched myself into his arms and kissed his lips passionately. I kissed him full of promises, full of our lives together. I heard applause from the muggle families gathering in the distance. I felt like I was on clouds as Stan slipped the diamond ring on my finger. This was it.


	20. Loose Ends

Telling the family was easy, compared to what we had all been through together it was painless.

"I thought you were already engaged," Maddie said from her perch by Nick. She was rubbing the small bulge on her mid-section. A pang of jealously hit me but instead of the bad taste in my mouth that usually followed, I felt hope and some impatience overfill me. Stan and I had opted for a short engagement. November, we agreed on. It was when we had met again for the first time. Autumn was always our favorite season, the falling red, orange, yellow leaves was so picturesque.

Since it was the end of July though, we only had 4 months to plan. 4 months to plan, 1 year of being married and then 9 months of pregnancy brought me 29 when I had my first child. Our first child. When Stan and I had discussed it the week previously, we had both decided we wanted a big family. I, being an only child, was always lonely and Stan loved his siblings so much he wanted to let our children have the same opportunities he had.

Keeping the secret from every one was satisfying yet difficult. As I headed off to work each day I would have to avoid Amelia completely. I knew if we talked anymore than five minutes I knew I would accidently spill the beans. Stan and I had promised each other we wouldn't tell anyone for a week, keeping those 7 days free of any wedding plans. We both agreed Mum would go crazy when she heard. I felt Stan sigh next to me. He was obviously thinking about the same thing as me.

"I thought you were already married," Tyler piped in, tearing his gaze away from the wizard chess he was playing with Abby.

"No, we were not married before. Thank you for paying attention, Tyler," Stan said annoyed. He stopped mid groan to look at Mum who had not broken into tears like we had so thought.

"I'm so happy," She said after a pause. She was overwhelmingly calm as compared to what I had thought. "Well what are you waiting for?" She asked impatiently and as expected she threw us into wedding details the second after we sat down again.

"A muggle wedding," I said sternly. I wanted more than anything for my mother to come to my wedding, my last relation. I had told her the same day at lunch. She was unsurprised as well. She just nodded as I told her and continued drinking her lemonade.

"I can't say I'm surprised. It was time you settled down," She had said as though remaining single was my choice.

Although Stan didn't mention anything about it, I wanted to invite his father and his family as well. Stan's estrangement with his father had been just as deep as it had always been. Besides a brief conversation at Maddie's wedding, I don't think they had talked at all. I wanted them to make up but I dare not mention it. Stan always got touchy with the subject of his father and I didn't want to break our euphoric mood. Mum however dove into the subject bluntly.

"You've told your father, haven't you?" She said, talking to Stan. The look in her eyes meant she knew he hadn't.

"Not exactly…" Stan said trailing off. He didn't look his mother in the eyes. If he did though, like I did, you could see fury mixed with concern for her oldest son.

"Tell him. Right now in fact." Mom said sternly. "Take Abby with you as well, it's his weekend," She finished in an after-thought. Stan opened his mouth to protest but Mum's gaze cut him off. I had to compress a smile. I hoped I could do that with our kids. Stan sulkily took Abby's hand and we apparated next to the unkempt hedges. I had only been there one time and now it looked just about as out of place as it had before. Truthfully it was a beautiful house, but the strange color of the door made it look like it belonged with a circus. It was like a veil cloaking the house, reminding everyone else that although they seemed like it, they weren't quite normal.

Abby bounded up the steps on the porch as if she owned the place. She rang the doorbell before Stan had time to protest. He grabbed my hand in an afterthought and looked at me for the answers. I smiled reassuringly at him.

"Sometimes you just need to forgive and forget," I whispered as the door opened. I felt awfully hypocritical, since with my own father I had done the exact opposite. I forgot it as I saw Sunny's figure open the door. She welcomed Abby with a hug before she even realized we were standing there. Her smile faded immediately and stared at us strangely. Her glossy pink lips formed an 'o' and she looked in shock.

"Oh my goodness! Brooke! Stan! It's been too long, really it has been! Come in come in," Sunny said ushering us. Abby had disappeared to a room to play with her half sisters. I didn't see Stan's dad but by the time we reached the kitchen I already caught a glimpse of his graying father. He looked considerably older since I had seen him at the wedding two months prior. He seemed to take on his wife's comical expression before he regained his composure. "They've come to stay for dinner." Sunny said lightly taking the place next to her husband. I heard Stan clear his throat.

"We've already eaten. So has Abby," He said gruffly in a voice deeper than usual. I just stood rooted in my place unaware how to act in this certain situation. I wondered if I should play submissive like Sunny had who seemed very interested in her glass of water. I awkwardly sat next to her as Stan stayed standing up staring his father down.

After a few uncomfortable moments of silence, Stan's father cleared his throat.

"I never got to apologize," Stan's father started awkwardly. Stan blushed; he was obviously not expecting this. "I didn't mean to hurt you and your family." It sounded strangely impersonal to hear Mr. Shunpike call Stan's family not his own. Stan seemed to be thinking along the same lines. He kept his mouth shut though and Mr. Shunpike went on. "I'm not good with words, you know that. Well maybe you don't. I can never get what's in my heart to translate into words. I wrote a diary. I don't know if anyone ever-"

"I read it," Stan interrupted in a stranger voice still. Was that a waver I heard?

"Oh," Stan's dad said faltering. "I know maybe what I did was wrong but I had to do it son. I would have stayed there if I hadn't made you miserable. You already were, maybe you don't remember. Your mother and I were always fighting." Stan looked at the ground. He mumbled something I couldn't catch. "What?" Stan's father said again.

"You could have stayed. You could have visited. Anything." Stan said and I looked away as I saw tears well up in my fiancé's eyes. I felt it then increasingly harder to swallow. "Look, Brooke said to me today forgive and forget, I'll try to do that but you can't expect me to be so happy right now," Stan said looking away. "That's not why we came over here at all," He gestured to me. I had had tried to look like I wasn't eavesdropping but it was hard when they were only 2 feet away from me. "Brooke and I are engaged to be married. I'm sure Mum will force me to invite you all to the wedding, it's in November." Stan said proudly. Sunny squealed next to me, and Mr. Shunpike looked over at me for the first.

"I don't think we've met," He said thickly extending his hand across the table.

"How strange, I thought we had," I replied coolly as I shook his hand. There was no longer any doubt in the room to whose side I was on. It reminded me of an encounter I had seen the same week between my students. Charles, shy and somber, had gone over to Dorothy and in his terms told her off. Of course all he had said was "You swerve a little jerky," but Dorothy was so appalled she burst into tears. I calmed her down enough to practice again but she was so shaken she didn't have the heart. I had always sort of disliked Dorothy, her attitude was atrocious, and so I encouraged other children to push past her. I hadn't realized that Dorothy, although older and more experienced, was still a child. Mr. Shunpike stayed silent. Sunny was uncomfortable, I could tell by the way she shifted every two seconds. I, unlike Sunny, enjoyed the silence. It was a sort of challenge in my mind, who ever talked first lost.

"Um… Brooke and I have to go now. It's Sunday, you know, we've got work tomorrow." He said, losing my imaginary game. I had almost forgotten how late it was. Past 8 for sure, to wake up at 6 the next day I needed my beauty rest.

"You never told me where you worked, Stan, nor you Brooke," Mr. Shunpike said as we walked to the door.

"Stan works on the Knight Bus. He is the conductor," I said proudly, glad that Sunny was out of earshot. I heard the girls moan as Sunny told them to go to bed.

"Oh, that's nice," Mr. Shunpike, said surprised.

"Yeah, you know, he had to apprentice there to have enough money to support the kids you abandoned," I said testing him. Apparently my own motto was forgotten.

"Brooke!" Stan said offended. His face was stretched with worry and I knew that he had forgiven his father, though he may never admit it.

"I get it. I know it. I am doing my part now. I pay for Tyler's education and I'll pay for Abby's. If it's money you want then I'll give it to you. I just want to see my kids again," Mr. Shunpike said. His voice was dripping with sadness and I regretted saying those things to him. No longer did Stan's father stand in front of me, but it was just an old man. He was an old man who just wanted to be loved by his children again. I didn't know if Stan saw what I saw, and if he did he didn't show it. His face was solid and for once I couldn't read it.

"What if it's too late? Father… Dad… I do forgive you for whatever you did. I really do. Come and visit some time, but I don't expect us to have the old comradeship we used to have," Stan said simply and apparated away not even bothering to wait for me. I gave an apologetic smile to Stan's bewildered father.

I apparated away within in seconds and returned home. I had opened the door expecting to find Stan sulking on the couch but instead the home was barren. I knew he needed some time to think. Instead of having a release like Paul's, who went and mowed the lawn once a week, Stan stored his feelings. In one burst he would have them all. He sometimes disappeared like this every couple of months and I would always find him next to me the morning after. I never asked where he went; maybe I was scared to know. A part of me resented that Stan couldn't just tell me his feelings. I understood how he felt sometimes though; I had some things I just didn't want Stan to know. I had Amelia to spill my secrets to and although Paul and Stan were friends, they weren't as intimate as us. Amelia and I even had a riff growing between us. Since the camp opened we have both been extremely busy. We just had nothing to talk about right now. I'm sure we would get over it but now it was just a silent phase. We saw each other every day, five days a week, we did most everything together. The camp thankfully was in its last week. All we had left was the big quidditch match that I felt extremely confident about.

That Friday, I arrived at work with a big smile on my face, ready to win our handcrafted trophy. It was only when I reached the gates that the lightning storm started. The annual quidditch match was to be cancelled immediately. Before I knew what I was doing, My eyes had filled with tears and I was sobbing quietly into Amelia's shoulder.

The wedding approached in what felt like a matter of days. August, September, October all passed quickly. Maddie was over at the Shunpike's house constantly. I wondered if she even went to her own house. Since Nick's wife was always at the Shunpike's, Nick after coming directly from work, was there too. Always.

"Where do you want to go on your honeymoon?" Mum would ask. I would open my mouth to answer when Maddie started.

"I didn't go on a honeymoon. It's really a waste of money," Maddie would say. I would hit her had she not been in the condition she was in. Her stomach grew bigger each time I saw her and soon she could hardly get off the couch without being helped. That was her only protection. When that sucker was born though…

"What kind of flowers do you want?" Mum asked once.

"I used wildflowers, we have plenty of those," Maddie answered for me. I knew she was just trying to help, really she was but I just wanted to plan my own wedding. It sounded completely snobby if I responded after her saying "lilacs". Of course Maddie was oblivious to it all. She was damn hormonal. She cried for hours and when asked why she would reply with "I forgot". She ate everything in the house and Mum catered to her like a princess. I really hoped with all of my heart I wasn't like that.

Stan was exhausted too. All the free time I had was spent towards planning the wedding, but Stan had no free time. Although Mother offered to pay for the wedding, we both refused and because of that Stan was working double shifts. He would leave before I woke up and he slip beside me in bed late at night. This did wonders for our sex life. We were at it like dogs, humping and grinding to some silent drum. We worked all throughout the long nights and on the occasional days when Stan had the day off. We wouldn't be seen out of the house on those days. My relationship with Amelia had returned to normal too. Now we laughed and joked and I would put my hand on her stomach and she wouldn't flinch away. Even though Amelia was only five months pregnant, she had a stomach equivalent to Maddie's. The day before Maddie's due date and two weeks before my wedding, Amelia told me she was having twins.

"It runs in the family, you see," She said smiling. "My mother was a twin and my aunt was a twin. My dad's sister not my mom's, that would be obvious. I had already set up two cribs in case, but now it's definite." Everything about her seemed to double from then on. Her joy, her laugh, her smile and most of all her stomach were all bigger and brighter. Unlike Maddie, Amelia was like a goddess when she was pregnant. She was the model of what I wanted to be. We giggled now like crazy, the tiniest thing set us off. Paul would walk in and get a glass of water and we would just be sitting there giggling. Mum however hated when I giggled. Her inner evil came out when planning the wedding.

"What? What is so funny about the priest's name being Richard?" She would say angrily and I would just giggle louder. The muggle church was set and the muggle priest (Dick, as his friend's most likely called him) picked. The invitations were sent out and I had picked out the loveliest (and most expensive) white dress I had ever seen. Though it still didn't hit me. It didn't hit me at all that in two weeks I would be married. As the week of our Sunday wedding approached, I still didn't feel nervous… just happy. Then Maddie went into labor.

"Brooke," Maddie said and I walked over to her. The pink blanket nestled in between her arms was her newborn baby. "I know that…" She didn't finish because she was crying. She tried to continue you still, "maaaaaayge iii vvasssnb't the bbest," She blubbered until she got control of herself. I felt bad then for wanting to sock this girl. She was so young and so beautiful, too young and too beautiful. She didn't want what happened but she made due.

"I wasn't the best sister-in-law and I'm sorry. I'm jealous Brooke. I want to be you so bad and plan everything out but now I'm looking at little Julia and I'm thinking how could I have ever thought that she was a mistake." She stopped and sniffed loudly. The baby in between her arms shifted Maddie cradled her more carefully. "I want her middle name to be Brooke. I always thought it was a pretty name. I just want you to know that I'm thankful that you put up with me," She said as her eyes began to drop. She handed me the baby and she fell asleep soon after. I looked at the little baby in my arms, my future little niece. She was so adorable, with eyes that were squinted tightly. I wondered if the were blue like Stan's. On top of her head was a black mop of hair. I stuck my finger next to the baby's tiny fist. Her grip tightened on it and I squealed. She was so beautiful, like her mother. I kissed her forehead. Stan came sometime later, running through the door. He had just been able to get off of work. Abby and Mum had disappeared into the hallway to find snacks and Nick was dozed in a chair. Stan walked over to me. I hardly noticed him; I was too busy staring at this small little bundle of beauty.

I knew how she would be crying all through the night in the weeks to come, I knew how she would color on the walls as she got older and how she was be found snogging with her boyfriend in broom closet when she was a teenager but now she was just so beautiful. I kissed the baby's cheek and Stan kissed mine. From that point on I wasn't nervous I wasn't even mulling over how happy I was, instead I was filled with impatience.

A/N: Only ONE chapter left. Thanks for reading!


	21. Final

The wedding was beautiful. I know, I am supposed to say that as the bride, and truly if we were married in a state hall in Portland it would have beautiful, but the wedding truly was. The church was big and had a huge cathedral filled with hundreds of stained glass windows. The priest was a preacher. Imagine that. He spoke loudly yet beautifully. Abby, my flower girl, beautifully placed the roses along the white carpet that stretched from the double doors at the front to the altar, as if they floated from her hands to the floor in a precise order. Paul and Amelia went after, walking slowly yet delibteretly, taking their places on either side of Stan. I took my mother's hand and we walked to the door waiting for our cue.

"Are you nervous?" She asked excitedly.

"No," I said truthfully. My voice came out like a sigh. My happiness could be heard through the very tone of my voice. It could be seen through every fiber of my being. Stan and I were married on November 18th at exactly 3:14 pm. I knew the time because a clock was strategically placed on the wall opposite from Stan. I just had to gaze over his shoulder to see what time it was. Of course, Stan caught my eye immediately after and held it there through the rest of the ceremony.

"You're beautiful," Stan whispered as the priest said words I didn't bother to hear. I blushed madly. Just two words from Stan made my heartbeat so fast and my face turn a hideous red color. I smiled at him, like a fool. He leaned in to kiss me and I kissed back.

"Hey," The priest said from far away. I broke away and look at him strangely. Why was he interrupting? "You haven't even said your vows yet," He said. The audience laughed. I could easily hear Al's distinguishable guffaw. I blushed and Stan even turned a light tint of pink. We said our vows and exchanged our rings. The ring, an opal stone encrusted with diamonds, now lay over my ring finger. I marveled at how the color immediately changed to pink. The stone was the same as the Stan's grandmother's necklace. It was exactly as I had pictured it.

Soon after, the priest pronounced us man and wife. What a strange thing to say, I thought. So was Stan not a man before today? Obviously he was a man. Why would they say that?

"Something old. It was my grandmother's" Stan whispered about the ring as our mouth's met again for the second time. The crowd applauded this time and I smiled wide as we "drove" to the reception. For the sake of Stan's father's family we apparated and put the illusion of us coming out of the car. I was deathly afraid of them since getting into a car accident when I was 16. I loved being a witch, there was always a way to avoid muggle things. The reception was held at a nicely decorated hall. Stan and I did the whole she-bang. We danced slowly to our first dance, twirling around slowly and kissing for the small crowd. By then though the numbness had worn off and I could feel the blister's setting in. We only danced for a few more songs before they were bleeding. But I, being stubborn, ignored it and made myself stand up. The cake was delicious. Although I couldn't prove it, I was pretty sure there was something magical in there to boost happiness. When I asked Mum about it she shrugged.

"The only thing I put was chocolate," She said with a devilish grin I hadn't seen for so long. Abby, had fallen asleep standing up at 5 and I so wanted to do the same, but the crowd wouldn't let me. They insisted on coming up one by one and paying their congratulations. Al and his family were the only people that really mattered to me and we had a big laugh.

"Hey, good thing those marriage laws were repealed," Said Al. I laughed at his playful yet political joke. Except for the occasional owl, Al and I rarely talked. I made a mental note to invite him over more.

I glanced at Maddie and Nick, with bags under their eyes, tenderly holding Julia Brooke. Nick smiled and waved at me when our eyes met, but Maddie didn't seem to notice. Amelia was next to Paul, with her round stomach ready to pop. She smiled at me and the smile that was already on my face became wider.

Stan and I didn't talk much during the reception. We couldn't keep the smile off of our faces. We kissed each other's lips whenever our eyes met and soon all I wanted to do was go home. I just wanted to go home and love my husband. I giggled as my new name settled in my mind. Brooke Shunpike sounded so good. I caught Stan's eye as he looked away from his mother for a second. He winked and I blushed. Mum looked at us but I barely noticed her.

"Go on ahead, I clean up. You airplane leaves early tomorrow for France in the morning," I heard Mum's voice. Upon hearing these words I removed my shoes quickly and leapt into Stan's arm. We arrived at our condo soon after. The talk of a new house was always on our mind and half of our things were already packed even though we hadn't really chosen a new place. We were fascinated however, by a big house close to Diagon Alley. It was big and old, made over 40 years ago, yet it was breathtaking. It would have taken a lot of work to renovate so we hadn't closed on the deal. I however hoped that Stan and I would be able to get the house. It just needed some love inside of it was all.

"Brooke, I love you so much." Stan breathed into my ear from behind. I immediately shivered.

"I love you. Sometimes I wonder if love is strong enough a word," I told him unbuttoning his shirt.

"I do too. But it's all I can think of right now. My mind is too filled with thoughts of you." He said quietly and I believed it. That night we made love with such tenderness with the telling of such promises that I could hardly keep from crying. It was sweet.

I had a vision as I lay next to Stan some hours later of our future. We were sitting on the porch of some unfamiliar house; it looked suspiciously like the house we had been looking at earlier, rocking and holding hands. Our hair was a matching white and there were quite a few wrinkles to be seen. I saw our grandchildren playing in the field in front of our house happily. I heard their laughter filling my ears so that I smiled along. And I saw Stan sitting right next to me where he should always be. I was suddenly very conscious of how long we would be together. The thought didn't frighten me. Instead it made me eager. I was eager to share the experiences of a married couple with Stan. This was only the beginning after all. My mind flashed to the night when we had met. Stan had been shy and awkward, we had become better people, and both of us had become better by our relationship then. I remember how my face had looked when I had got the news Stan was in Azkaban. I couldn't believe it, there was no way my Stan had done something so terrible. I remember again the day when I had gotten on the Knight Bus in tears and Stan knew exactly what not to say. He always knew. I looked over at Stan's sleeping figure and only one thing ran through my mind. It was destiny. It was pre determined that we had met, that we got married. We should have stayed together all along. If only I hadn't broken up with him, we could have been married so much earlier. I would have had some many more adventures and stories to tell featuring us together. The Knight Bus was a beacon for our love. Providing its breeding ground. We were met again in the Knight Bus both times. Maybe the Knight Bus itself wanted us to be together. It had a plan and I shunned it. I knew one thing for certain though, I was so glad I had gotten on the Knight Bus. I mentally reminded myself to take my kids on a trip in the Knight Bus showing them the memorial. I felt Stan moved from under my caressing hands. He roused in his sleep and once noticing I was near him smiled. That smile reminded me of all the memories we had had and all of the memories that would come. That smile reminded me of the Knight Bus.


End file.
